The Matrix: Rebellion
by Captain REX
Summary: A teenage boy named Richard Thornton finds out that there is more to the world than meets the eye, especially when men in dark suits replace his friends and infamous terrorists contact him with offers of freedom...but freedom from what?
1. Seeing the Impossible

CHAPTER 1: SEEING THE IMPOSSIBLE  
"Are you coming or not, Wake?"  
Three boys stood outside the gates of a large junior high. It was a cold night and was destined to snow sometime soon. Thick, dark clouds covered a beautiful full moon, and it was dark. The three boys were dressed in dark clothing so they would not be seen. They all wore sweaters with the hoods up, hiding their faces.  
One boy had a bulky backpack on, full to bursting with spray paint cans, silly string bottles, and toilet paper. He was medium in height and had a good build, but nothing special. He had spiked brown hair that ended in bleached tips. His face was set with grim determination. His name was Richard Thornton, but his friends called him Rick. He would be turning 15 a week after school ended, which was two days from now. As a good-bye present to his worst teacher, Mrs. McGreer, the math teacher, he and his friends Gregory (Greg) and Thomas (Tom) had decided to vandalize her classroom. Just in case anybody was around to hear them, they were going by codenames. Greg was Voltage. Tom was Pistol. Rick was Wake.  
"Well?" The boy who had spoken earlier spoke again, turning away from the fence. This was Tom, the group's vigilant leader. He was tall and lanky, with big ears and a narrow face. His hair was buzzed short, but hidden by the hood. Greg was his twin brother, and looked identical to Tom. Their faces appeared gaunt in the dim light of the moon, and their cold blue eyes focused on Rick.  
"Yeah, let's do it," Rick said, and he hopped the fence. Tom and Greg followed him quickly, clambering up the fence noisily and dropping down on the other side. They glanced around to make sure nobody had heard them or seen them, and then slinked away onto the campus in the dead of night. They ran across the basketball courts and pressed their backs to the walls of the large gym. In the shadows they ran to classroom number 18. During the day Tom had jammed one of the windows open while Mrs. McGreer was out of the room, so they now crawled through the window and onto the low bookshelf she had on the side of the room, which was loaded with heavy textbooks.  
"Well, let's get started," Rick said, dropping his backpack onto the nearest desk. He brought out two spray cans and ran up the chalk board, spraying "MCGREER IS SCHOOL'S SATAN" on it in red and green paint. Tom began running the toilet paper rolls around, wrapping up the desks. Greg took out the silly string and began shooting the pink and blue string everywhere. When the spray paint in the canisters in Rick's hands ran out, he plopped down at the teacher's desk. He switched on the iMac, aiming to erase everything on the computer. Instead of being greeted by the blue thing of the computer wallpaper, the screen went black. His face scrunched up with confusion. Then something was scrawled across the blackness. "Hello Wake."  
What the hell? Rick thought. He tried to type back and succeeded. It reminded him of using AOL Instant Messenger at home. "Hi, who's this?"  
A reply came quickly, and it sounded urgent. "I cannot tell you now. You must get out of there."  
With that, the computer shut itself down. Rick sat there, staring at the blank screen. Had the computer just talked to him? How did it do that? He did not know what to make of it. He looked over at Tom and Greg, who were busy unscrewing a desk to make it loose, hoping that it would collapse on the kid who sat there tomorrow. They stopped when they noticed their friend sitting and staring. They were about to ask him what was wrong and if he had dismantled the computer yet, but they were stopped when the phone started ringing. Common sense told them not to answer it. Then the door knob to the front door started turning, and common sense told them to dive under the teacher's desk.  
The door knob stopped turning, for it was locked. Then the sound of a sub-machine gun firing rang in their ears, and the door knob was blown off. The door opened easily, and in walked a man wearing all black and holding an Uzi. His black hair was shoulder-length, tangled and frayed. A trench coat swished around him, the glimmer of gun metal obvious under it. His eyes were hidden by a pair of dark, streamlined glasses. His boots clicked on the tile floor. Sweat dripped down his face, his hair matted, as if he had been running for a long time. Running for the desk they were hiding under, he reached for the phone.  
"What the...?" Rick heard Greg ask as a computerized noise filled their ears, originating from Tom. Rick turned to look at his friend, to see his body shaking, blurring, and then...disappearing. The dark Volcom jacket, the black pants, his gaunt face, all replaced by a different person. A man with thinning hair, combed straight and perfect backwards. He was wearing a dark greenish-black suit, a curling audio feed wire coming from the collar of his suit jacket to the audio feed in his right ear. A pair of polished leather shoes were very obvious and glinted in the moon light. He, like the other man, sported a pair of dark shades, though they were less streamlined and more square. He looked like an FBI agent, but scarier. Scarier because of what had just happened. Greg and Rick sat in fear next to the man, wondering what had happened to their friend.  
"Time to put an end to this, Mr. Morrell," the man said. In an amazing feat of strength, he lifted up the desk and hurled it through the large window nearby. The telephone stopped ringing and was crushed under the weight of the desk, shattering alongside Mrs. McGreer's iMac. The other man, apparently Mr. Morrell, turned to run, but another person stepped through the doorway. He looked very similar to the man that had just thrown the desk out the window.  
"You have no choice..." said the man who had just stepped through the door.  
"...but to give in..." said the man who had lifted up the desk. Suddenly Greg's body began to blur and turned into another man, also very similar to the previous two.  
"...Mr. Morrell," finished the new man. All three of the men in greenish-black suits stood and talked very organized, very coordinated. Almost monotonous. All three of them pulled pistols from the inside of their suit jackets and aimed for Mr. Morrell.  
"No! I will not surrender to the Matrix!" he shouted. With that, all three of the suited men fired. Multiple shots tore through Mr. Morrell, his blood splattering on the desks, on the chalk board, on the floor. As one last action, Mr. Morrell fired his Uzi at the suited man next to Rick. Rick moved out of the way as the man became a blur of movements. First he was there, now there, and now he's there... Every single shot missed, the bullets shattering through the chalk board. The slate fell to the ground in splintered pieces. Mr. Morrell toppled over onto the desk that Greg and Tom had unscrewed, and it gave way beneath him. He was dead.  
This was too much for Rick. He pushed his way past the suited men and made a run for the door. He ran as fast as he could, not stopping until he reached his house. He climbed up onto the roof and jumped through his open bedroom window and landed on the bed. He fell asleep there, and began having nightmares of men in green-black suits chasing him, shooting at him with their pistols. All he could do was fire back with silly string and spray paint, until they reached him... 


	2. They're Coming for You

CHAPTER 2: THEY'RE COMING FOR YOU  
Rick woke up at 7 o'clock AM to get ready for school, in his large water bed in his upstairs bedroom in his two story house with a white picket fence on White Rabbit Avenue. Even though he didn't want to see the blood splattered everywhere or the body of Mr. Morrell sprawled on the floor, his parents would not let him skip school. Not with the end of the school year only a day away. He ran down the stairs wearing navy blue cargo pants and a dark gray Quicksilver shirt, greeted by the smell of French toast and maple syrup. His dad sat at the round dinner table drinking coffee and his mom was at the kitchen counter finishing up with the breakfast. The news was on, and his parents were watching the screen intently.  
"Good morning," he called to his parents, but they did not reply. Their eyes were glued to the screen, and his dad had been holding the coffee mug to his lips for a long time without drinking. Rick sat down next to his father, also watching the television screen. A woman reporter stood outside of a schoolyard. My schoolyard, Rick realized.  
"The FBI has caught one of the most wanted criminals in the world last night at Calantha Intermediate. The man was a terrorist who went by the code name Turbine, though his real name is known to be Winston Morrell. He was wanted for murder, resisting arrest, breaking & entering, and defacing of public and private property. It is most well known for his widespread destruction at Mall City last August, having a shootout with local policemen and the FBI. FBI agent Smith is here to tell us about the capture. Smith?"  
The camera turned to somebody that Rick did not want to see. His hair was combed straight and perfect. He wore a pair of shades, more square than streamlined. He wore a dark suit, a very dark green-black color. He wore a tie of the same color, with a little metal clip to keep it neat. An audio feed was in his right ear. He looked like an FBI agent, only scarier.  
"After receiving a tip from a local...informant, my fellow agents Johnson, Thompson, and Jackson pursued the man from a black woman's home. He momentarily out ran us and tried to get to the phone in room 18 of Calantha Intermediate. It is our observation that his kind use telephones to call fellow terrorists to come assist in an escape. But we have ways of tracking people down. We apprehended him as he reached for the phone. Thompson destroyed the phone with a shot from his pistol. He refused to come quietly and tried to shoot back, but we shot first..." Smith stopped and fixed the cuffs of his jacket. "He is no longer a virus of this community."  
"Thank you Agent Smith for your report..." the reporter went on, continuing the news, but they all jumped as phone rang. Rick's mother reached for the phone as the reporter announced that school at Calantha Intermediate would be canceled until further notice.  
"Hello? Oh, hi Mrs. Patrick, how are you? Glad to hear it..." Typical mother to mother conversation, Rick thought, rolling his eyes. "No, I haven't seen Greg or Tom..." Damn... He sat staring at the screen when there was a knock a the door.  
"Get it, son," Mr. Thornton, Rick's father, ordered. Rick got up and grabbed the brass door knob, turning it and pulling, opening the red wood door. A man from Fed-Ex was standing at the door holding a small brown box under one arm.  
"Package for Mr. Richard Thornton," the Fed-Ex guy said cheerfully as he handed over the package. "Hey, you look like you might go to Calantha Intermediate. Did you hear about..." Rick didn't let him finish, taking the box and closing the door in the guy's face. He didn't want to hear about the capture of Mr. Morrell, he was there. That Agent Smith guy on the television had lied about how the kill had gone. Sure, they had asked Mr. Morrell to surrender, but how they had finished him was much different. They had appeared out of nowhere, 'replacing' his friends and throwing the desk out the window. And Mr. Morrell had said something about a thing called 'the Matrix.' What the hell was the Matrix? Rick contemplated this as he walked up to his room. The box he was carrying might have his illegal fireworks that he ordered, so he didn't want his parents to see. He locked the door behind him.  
He flopped down on his bed. He shook the package to see what it might contain before opening it, and then flipped out his knife. He cut through the tape and cardboard and soon he was holding a black cell phone. He flipped it open, examining it thoroughly. Who would send me a cell phone? he wondered. He turned it on and watched as the buttons lit up one by one by a green light. It began to ring, startling him and nearly causing him to fall off the bed. He held it to his ear and pressed a button.  
"Hello?" he asked.  
"Hello Wake," answered a deep, calm voice. "I suspect you are wondering who I am and why I have sent you this cell phone. To answer your first question, you may call me Odysseus. To answer your second question, I sent you this phone to answer your other questions that you may be having. It is something you have been thinking about since Mr. Morrell said it last night."  
"What is the Matrix?" Rick asked.  
"Yes, that is what I will answer. But not right now. Do you know the abandoned apartment building three blocks from your house?"  
"Yeah, what about it?"  
"Meet me there, room 101. Now, there is another question you have concerning people like Smith. The suited men that you saw last night..."  
"How did you know I saw them last night?" It was very confusing, for nobody but the three suited men, Mr. Morrell, and his two friends had been there.  
"I know many things," Odysseus replied. "And about those suited men, they are called Agents, they are coming for you. Listen..." Downstairs Rick could hear a knock at the door and then the redwood door opening with a creak. His mother greeted whoever it was at the front door. The person at the door replied.  
"We are here to talk with Richard Thornton," replied a gruff voice. It was Smith from the news.  
"What is he doing here?" Rick asked hurriedly.  
"You forgot your backpack at room 18 last night. The navy blue one with the nametag attached to it," Odysseus told him. "And they know that you are on the phone with me at this very moment. Jump out your window, they are in the house."  
"What? Are you crazy?"  
"No, just very wise. Do it now or they will get you in ten seconds. I will guide you onward. Now go!" There was a knock at the door.  
"Mr. Thornton, may we have a word with you?" came the voice of Smith at the door. Rick ignored his mental reasoning of why he should not jump out the window and wrenched it open, climbing out onto the roof. He turned back to see a fist go through the door, splintering it. It reached down for the lock and swiftly unlocked it.  
"Jump off the roof. I moved your bike out of the garage earlier, get on it and start pedaling fast. Avoid people, and I'll see you at room 101." Odysseus cut the connection to Rick's cell phone. One block down... Rick told himself as he crossed past the intersection of Elm Street and White Rabbit Avenue. He looked back after crossing over 18th Street only to see that two of the suited men were chasing him down the street, mere feet behind him. He turned back to see a fist flying towards his face, and then he knew nothing. Agent Smith had punched him hard and he flew backwards and off his bike.  
"Good work Agent Smith," Agent Thompson said in monotone as he caught the unconscious boy in mid-air.  
"Thank you Agent Thompson," Smith said, fixing his tie as they walked to the black Lexus with tinted windows, Thompson carrying Rick by the throat. Seeing this, a girl in a tight black leather outfit drove away on a motorcycle, her eyes covered by a pair of shades...  
  
Rick came to in a small, white room. He was sitting in a plastic fold-up chair, strapped to it with a taut cord. The room had one door, painted a sickly green, but the door did not have a window, nor did the room. His senses were returning to him, his vision less blurry. The instinct to rub his eyes was strong, but he could not because his arms were bound tightly behind him. The gag in his mouth did not help the now aching jaw.  
"Hello, Mr. Thornton," Smith called as cheerfully as he could in his monotone voice. He was standing at the other side of the room, accompanied by two suited men, or Agents as Lincoln had told him on the phone, that Rick had not yet seen before, though they shared the same perfect hair and dark green suit and all that fun stuff. "Glad you could join us."  
"Why the hell are you doing this to me?!" Rick wanted to shout, but it was muffled and his jaw hurt terribly. Smith walked over and sat down at the table in front of Rick, still smiling. The smile faded as he began to talk again.  
"We've been monitoring you, Richard. We know that you have a D in history class, that you watch violent movies when your parents are asleep, and that you help your elderly neighbor walk her dog..." Smith rambled, looking through a file on the table. "We know you were there in room 18 at the intermediate school to vandalize your teacher's room. We know you saw us eliminate a public enemy using certain...skills. We know you were receiving phone calls from a man that we have defined as...extremely dangerous. Do you know why he called you?" Agent Smith got in his face, not expecting an answer. "Because he wanted you to become a dangerous criminal like him. He wanted to turn you into a public enemy. Do you know what we do with public enemies? Of course you do. You watched Mr. Morrell die."  
Agent Smith pulled off his glasses and tucked them into his suit pocket, revealing piercing, unnaturally ice-blue eyes, which stared, unblinking, at Rick. "We are giving you a chance to tell us where this...Odysseus, wanted you to meet him." Rick had a sudden urge to not tell him, to keep the location of his mysterious caller a secret. He shook his head best he could, but it pained him after a few shakes that indicated "No," so he stopped. He blinked and Agent Smith had his square sunglasses on again. He pulled off his glasses and tucked them into his suit pocket, revealing piercing, unnaturally ice-blue eyes, which stared, unblinking, at Rick. "We are giving you a chance to tell us where this...Odysseus, wanted you to meet him."  
Whoa, deja vu, Rick thought to himself, shaking his head "No," again. But looking past Agent Smith, he noticed something. The door was gone. So were the cords that had previously been holding him to the chair, as well as the gag that had prevented him from speaking. The room was inaccessible and inescapable, and there were three Agents in the room with him. He was terrified for some unexplainable reason, and he finally decided it was because of what he had seen the Agents do to people when they killed Mr. Morrell and made his friends disappear. He had felt what they did to people in that solid punch that he hadn't been expecting. Yet, he was feeling defiant. He could not come up with a logical explanation for that other than he didn't belong here. Like he belonged elsewhere. He tried to speak but his jaw wasn't working. In fact, his mouth felt like it was stuck and his jaw muscles were extremely tight and aching. He shook his head no and then reached up to feel his mouth but...it wasn't there! It was gone entirely, with no trace whatsoever. He started screaming, but there was no sound.  
"You made the wrong decision, Mr. Thornton," Agent Smith said grimly, a foul grimace on his face, though Rick could tell he was slightly amused by his panicking. Smith tossed the file off of the shiny table in between them, and slammed Rick down upon it after pulling him up by the throat as if without effort. The other two Agents walked forwards calmly. The first one pulled up his shirt, the second one held his writhing body down to the table. The first one then aided the second one in holding him down. Rick tried to get away from their grasp, but they were incredibly strong. "And though you have made the wrong decision, you are going to help us, whether you like it or not."  
Smith removed a small metal container from his suit pocket. It looked similar to fancy cigarette container, but when he opened it, it contained teardrop-shaped metal equipment. He plucked one out of the container and held it up while a transformation took place. A gelatinous substance formed around it, and then the thing popped out of the mold. It now wiggled around in Smith's hand, and looked like some sort of mechanical bug. Smith dropped it on Rick's chest and the boy began to 'scream' harder. He continued shaking against the Agents' grip, but to no avail. The mechanical insect crawled down towards Rick's belly button and began inserting its 'legs' into it. Then it wrenched it open and crawled inside, pulling itself in. The last thing Rick remembered was feeling intense pain as the thing disappeared inside of him...  
And then he woke up.  
He was sitting in his bed at home, the rain pounding outside. It was all a dream, Rick realized as he propped himself up. There is no such thing as Agents, and my friends haven't disappeared... The phone started ringing. Who would be calling me at this hour? Rick glanced at his clock, and felt somewhat startled by the time, though he knew not why. 1 am? He picked up the phone.  
"Hello?"  
"Hello Wake. Do you still want to meet? I've been waiting for most of the day..." 


	3. I Offer You Freedom

CHAPTER 3: I OFFER YOU FREEDOM  
Rick had been standing under the bridge for about an hour when the bronze car pulled up. It was obviously a custom job, for it did not look like car Rick had ever seen before, and there were no markings that told who had made it. Hell, there weren't even license plates. The back door on the right side of the car, facing Rick, popped open. A girl in a tight- fitting leather outfit and sleek polarized sunglasses beckoned him in. Rick nodded and got in, sliding onto the comfy leather seats. He shut the door and the car started moving. The person sitting in front of him, a older man wearing a tattered gray jacket, goggles, and a torn-up bullet- proof vest, pulled out a Colt revolver and put it to Rick's head. For a second he thought the man was going to pull the trigger, but the woman that was sitting next to him slapped the man's hand away.  
"Rusty, we don't need to go through the 'It's for our protection,' crap. He's just a kid," the woman said. The older man that was Rusty pocketed the gun, but still remained turned around.  
"Hello Wake," the woman said, gathering his attention. His head was still running from having a gun aimed for his forehead. The woman had straight brown hair that was pulled back into a bun, which seemed to sparkle because of the flecks of blonde hair that appeared in some places. Her eyes were hidden by the glasses, which she quickly pulled off now that it was darker. It revealed to him that she had brown eyes and a piercing gaze. Her skin was tan and smooth. Had Rick been her age, which he guessed was about 20 or 25, he would have definitely asked her out. But, under the current circumstances and the fact that he was too young, he tossed the thought aside. She wore tight fitting leather clothing, accompanied by a rather large belt hanging loosely from her midsection. The belt sported two gun holsters, which had two small pistols within. Rick remembered what Agent Smith had been saying about Mr. Morrell and his friends being terrorists, but this woman didn't look like a terrorist. She looked very feminine except for the guns and tight leather. "I am Artemis."  
"Pleased to meet you Artemis," Rick said, extending his hand. Rusty stirred at this motion, but shrugged it off when Artemis shook his outstretched hand and nothing exploded and nobody died. Artemis then motioned to Rusty and the man driving the car.  
"This is Rusty, one of the older members of our crew. He's had some...bad experiences with recruiting new rebels," Artemis said, making a gesture towards the older man. As Rick had noted before, Rusty was wearing a tattered gray jacket, goggles, and a torn-up bullet-proof vest. His hair was graying, but Rick could tell it had once been blonde. Deep creases were forming on his dirty face, making the many large scars more dramatic, and a graying goatee covered his chin. His goggles were darkened and kind of grimy. Over all, Rusty's appearance was filthy. The double-barrel shotgun he kept on the dashboard was getting rusty, adding to his filthy appearance. Rusty lifted his goggles for a moment, revealing that he only had one eye. The one that remained was brown but looked kind of glazed over. He was going blind.  
"This is why I hate recruiting," Rusty muttered, pointing to his eye and then the many bullet holes in his ragged jacket and bullet-proof vest. He made no friendly gestures towards Rick.  
"The man driving the car is Adelard." Adelard had no hair on his head, completely clean shaven. He had a slightly Arabic look to him. His shades were rectangular, tinted a shade of brown, and hanging around his neck on a thin wire. He was wearing a black shirt that had the sleeves torn off, revealing his large and sinuous muscles. Laying next to him on the ground was two Arabian-style swords that had curved blades, both of them sheathed in a fine reddish-brown leather. Adelard paid no attention to the boy who had just entered the car and kept driving.  
"Er...talkative, isn't he?" Rick joked nervously.  
"He's a mute. Lost his ability to speak when an Agent punched his vocal cords really hard during a fool-hardy fight..." Rusty explained.  
"Oh...well, uh, sorry Adelard," Rick apologized. He felt very awkward in a car with a beautiful woman, a literally rusty old veteran, and a mute that he had just unwittingly made fun of. Rick knew what it was like to be punched by an Agent, but actually fighting one sounded insane. Adelard simply nodded, Rick taking that he was forgiven.  
"Are there more of you?" Rick asked, "And do you all have names like this?"  
"We call 'em hacker names," Rusty answered him before Artemis could. "For instance, Rusty is what they have been calling me since I woke up, but when I was still in the Matrix, I was Howard Burton, a farmer in Texas. Artemis was Ginger Vera, a damn good model. I'm supposing that your hacker name will be Wake, as that is what Odysseus has been referring to you as."  
"Excuse me...woke up? Still in the Matrix? What the hell is the Matrix?" Rick asked, confused. "Odysseus still hasn't told me."  
"He will, I assure you," Artemis replied, rolling her eyes at Rusty, who turned around in his seat and muttered. "All will be answered in time." Rusty turned around again.  
"You didn't remember to check him, Artemis. You rarely do, and you remember what happened that one time. Lost quite a few friends to those Agents, didn't you?"  
Artemis rolled her eyes at him again and grabbed a machine that had been lying on the ground at her feet. It was a strange machine and looked as if it was used to suck on something, or electrocute it.  
"Lift up your shirt," Artemis commanded.  
"Why?"  
"I have to see if you've been bugged...which you probably have seeing that you didn't escape from the Agents the first time..." Rick obeyed, lifting up his dark brown shirt slowly. Artemis placed the machine on his stomach as Adelard plugged it in and flipped a few switches. A screen on the machine turned on, but Rick could not see it.  
"Yep, your bugged...try to relax..." Artemis told him, moving the machine slightly.  
"It's on the move," Rusty said, and Rick noticed that there was an odd sensation down by his belly button. A lump was moving up towards his chest. "Your gonna lose it like that one time..." Rusty continued, but Adelard forced Rusty down into his seat with a firm hand. Rusty turned around again anyway.  
"Shut up, I'm not gonna lose it..." Artemis muttered, moving the machine more and more.  
"Now!" Rusty shouted in her ear. Rick started to panic, but then a weird searing pain came across his stomach and electricity arced around the machine. Then a sucking feeling and more pain. He shouted, but it was soon over. Artemis rolled down the window and threw something from the car.  
"What the hell was that!?" Rick inquired, alarmed and confused.  
"A tracking device used by the Agents," Rusty told him. "They use it all the time."  
"Whoa, that thing was real!?" Rick shouted, still alarmed.  
"Yep, sure was. The Agents try to make you forget about it, but I make sure that Artemis checks the newcomers every time. Well, looks like we're there. All that driving was making me tired..." Rusty droned off.  
"You'll recognize this place," Artemis told him, and Rick peered out the window to see that they had arrived at a different abandoned apartment building than the one that Odysseus had wanted to meet at the first time. It had once been an expensive hotel, his father had told him, called the Sunset Hotel. But, as business receded and less and less people stayed in the building, it turned into an apartment building, renaming itself Sunset Homes. Business got to the point of non-existence and they closed it. The wrecking crews had yet to call it condemned, but it was still in terrible disrepair. They all got out of the car except for Adelard, who pulled the car into the alleyway next to the building. Together they walked in and reached room 101 in no time.  
"See ya, Wake!" Rusty called enthusiastically. "Hope you make the right decision..." Adelard and Rusty then continued up the stairs and out of sight.  
"Well, I must leave you here as well," Artemis told him. "I too hope that you make a good choice..." She followed the other two up the stairs. Rick looked after her until she disappeared from site, and then opened the door to room 101. He stepped in and closed the door behind him.  
"Welcome Wake," came the deep and calm voice of Odysseus. Rick could not see him, but knew that he was in the room with the wise man who had been calling him. He looked around the bare room, which was extremely dusty and many floor boards had rotted away. The only thing in the room was a decaying thick carpet and two high-back chairs that looked pretty comfortable. Next to them was a small wooden table with a cup of water sitting there. Odysseus will need it after all the explaining he's going to do, Rick thought with a smile. He wandered on over to the chairs and found where the voice had been coming from. In the chair that had been closest to him was Odysseus, sitting with his arms resting on the armrests, his large hands, hanging over the edge. "I am glad you still wanted to come after all the pain you have experienced. A broken jaw, bugged and debugged..."  
"How'd you know?" Rick asked.  
"You've been asking that of me a lot. I will tell you momentarily. But, I need to introduce myself. As you no doubt have guessed, I am Odysseus." Odysseus smiled, a warm, glowing smile. The razor-thin smile reminded Rick somewhat of the Cheshire cat from the book Alice in Wonderland. Odysseus was a black man, obviously very tall when standing, and looked very strong. His hair was short, curly and black. His mirrored sunglasses were round and wire-framed, covering his eyes mostly. He wore a long black trench coat, made of leather, and underneath he wore a gray button-up shirt and gray pants. Unlike Artemis, Rusty, and Adelard, he carried no weapons. Rick sensed a want for peace coming from this man, a sense of leadership and power. "But first I must tell you something else you have been questioning me about. The Matrix. Take a seat." Odysseus made a gesture towards the chair opposite of him, and Rick sat down.  
"Now, you want to know what the Matrix is? Then I shall try to describe it using the speech that a good friend of mine usually uses," Odysseus said, grinning. "How does it go now...ah yes, I remember now." He cleared his throat and smoothed out the wrinkles in his trench coat. "The Matrix is everything. It is all around us, even in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window, or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth." Odysseus looked for Rick's reaction in his eyes and in his face. Rick just gave him a confused look, unsure of what the Matrix really was.  
"What truth?" Rick asked, disoriented by what Odysseus had told him.  
"That you are a slave, Wake. Like everyone else you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell or taste or touch. A prison for your mind..." Odysseus gave him a grim smile. "Unfortunately, nobody can be told what the Matrix is. They must be shown," Odysseus replied, not answering his question. He placed a hand in his coat and pulled out a clenched fist, holding something tightly. He transferred something to his other hand and clenched it tightly around whatever it was that he was holding. Then he held out his hands, revealing two small jelly- bean shaped pills, one red, one blue. Rick looked up at Odysseus for a moment and saw the pills reflected in his glasses, then looked back at the pills.  
"What are those?" Rick asked.  
"These are how we get people out of the Matrix or leave them in. We give them a choice. You take the blue pill, you will consider this conversation and all that has happened a mere dream. You will never have heard of the Matrix or Agents or me and the others. You will remain Richard Anderson Thornton. But, if you take the red pill, I will show you what the Matrix is and why it is. You will do things that go beyond your wildest dreams, go places you've never gone before, be what you want to be. You will leave the name Richard behind and become Wake." Odysseus stared at the boy long and hard. "What do you say to that, Wake? It is entirely your choice."  
Rick sat, and he sat, and he sat. It seemed like hours were going by, the decision being hard for there was so much he did not know. But something at the back of his mind helped him make the choice. He began to reach for the red pill.  
"Remember, Wake, all I offer is the truth. Once you make the choice and take the pill, doesn't matter which one, there is no turning back," Odysseus said quickly. He continued looking straight at Rick through the glasses, Rick could sense it rather than see it. Rick thought for a second and then continued his grab for the red pill. He placed it in his mouth and grabbed the cup of water, gulping down the pill. He set the cup down after drinking half of it's contents. Odysseus smiled.  
"Good choice, Wake, good choice." Odysseus's grin was unfaltering. "Now, follow me..." Odysseus got out of the dusty chair and made his way to the door. Rick, or Wake, as he would now be calling himself, got up and hurriedly followed. Odysseus and Wake made their way up the stares quickly, till they reached room 303. Odysseus opened the door and let Wake enter first. The room was cramped with electronic equipment, green and blue lights glowing eerily in the dark room, coming from the complex racks of monitors, modules, and drives. Rusty and Artemis were busy with the machinery, but Adelard was sitting back. Odysseus flipped out a cell phone similar to the one he had sent Wake, and began talking to someone on the other line. Then he put the cell phone down, the line still active.  
"Rusty, are we on line?" Odysseus asked the older man without looking in his direction.  
"Just about..."  
"Good. Wake, please have a seat, we don't have much time..." Odysseus pointed to a chair near the center of the room, surrounded by all the machinery, next to a cracked mirror. Wake nodded and took a seat, where Adelard began to quickly attach small gray electrode disks to his body.  
"You did all this?" Wake asked the muscular man bending over him. Adelard nodded before placing a pair of headphones over the boy's ears. Wake gave him a look of confusion when he saw that they were wired to an old phone. Adelard gave a silent chuckle as he moved away. Artemis seated herself nearby, by Rusty stayed in his spot.  
"The pill you took is part of a trace program. It's designed to disrupt your input/output carrier signal so we can pinpoint your location," Odysseus explained to Wake. "So we can find you when you get out of the Matrix."  
"Uh...okay..." Wake said, not really understanding. He was too confused by these people. They seemed incredibly smart for terrorists. As the others pounded away on keyboards, he noticed something. Wide-eyed, he stared as the mirror began to heal itself, a web-work of cracks slowly running together as though the mirror was made of liquid metal.  
"Did you guys see that?" Wake asked cautiously. Nobody replied. Wake jabbed a finger at the mirror and pulled it out quickly as it disappeared beneath the surface of the peculiar mirror. The mirror liquid followed his fingers in long rubbery strands and remained stuck to them. Odysseus began speaking to him.  
"Have you ever had a dream, Wake, that you were so sure was real?"  
"This can't be..." Wake started, watching as the liquid began to spread.  
"Be what? Real?" Odysseus asked with a smile as lightning flashed outside the windows. Odysseus continued with what he had been saying. "What if you were unable to wake from that dream, Wake? How would you know the difference between the dream world and the real world?" The rubbery strands of mirror broke and began to spread across his hand, spreading like melted wax, reflecting Wake's terrified face in his palm. The others in the room began to talk quickly.  
"It's going into replication," Artemis alerted.  
"Rusty?" Odysseus talking.  
"Still nothing..." Rusty replied. Odysseus shook his head and picked up the cell phone again.  
"Bolt, we'll be needing a signal soon," Odysseus said into the phone.  
"It's cold," Wake added, trying to rub the mirror off of his arm. It spread to both hands, and now raced up his arms. The cold substance seemed to come to life, racing and crawling up towards his face. He stuck his head up, feeling as if he was drowning.  
"I've got a fibrillation!" Artemis shouted.  
"Damn. Rusty?"  
"Almost there..."  
"He's going into arrest!" Artemis shouted again as the mercury-like substance began to creep up his face and into his mouth.  
"Lock! We've got him!" Rusty declared proudly. "I've done it again!"  
"Bolt, now!" Odysseus hollered into the cell phone.  
Suddenly, Wake felt as if he was being pulled away, down into darkness. The coldness of the mirror liquid was gone, and he felt warm and wet. The room spun around him and suddenly disappeared as if he was running away from it, and then...only blackness... 


	4. The Real World

CHAPTER 4: THE REAL WORLD  
Wake suddenly felt like he was drowning again. His vision was blurry and it appeared that snakes were writhing around them, though they were cold and made of metal. He pulled his arms through the thick gelatinous substance that surrounded him and whacked away the metal snakes. His head emerged from the goop and he was thrashing around. He felt like there was something stuck in him. His vision focused, and he could see better. He suddenly realized that there was a tube down his throat and he pulled at it, tearing it from his throat and mouth before his gag reflex could activate. Now his vision was returning, and he looked at his arms and felt them. Many wires were sticking out, but Wake was unsure what they were for. But the thought of having the wires in him at all was terrifying enough to make him panic. He noticed a weight at the back of his head and reached up to find a coaxial plugged into the base of his skull. More panicking and thrashing. He spun around, spotting oval capsules made of clear alloy. Electricity occasionally sparked off of them and jumped to the other pillars that were covered in the more of the oval capsules. His vision increased and he could now see what was inside those oval capsules...humans. Human beings, hairless and covered in wires as he was. He tried to scream, but his lungs weren't working very well.  
Something zoomed down from overhead. It seemed like a giant spider, but there was no thread attached to it, and it hummed like a car engine. It glared at the boy sitting in the vat of goop in front of it with red LED eyes, and grabbed him by the throat. Wake gasped for air, grabbing at the metallic pincer it had grabbed him by. The tips of the pincer grabbed the coaxial in the back of his head and began to twist it. Eventually it unplugged and dropped into the goo, along with Wake. The rest of the wires protruding from his arms and spinal chord shot out with a hiss and thwacked his face. Then there was a flush, and he was pulled away, into a wet, dank tube, the pink goo following him. The air rushed past his naked body, the wind brushing his face. He squinted, his eyes agitated by the rushing air.  
Then the tube ended. He was hurled through the air and into a pool of water. He was a good swimmer, but...he wasn't floating. He lashed out at the water, striking it, trying to move through it...he was losing consciousness fast, water rushing into his mouth. The last thing he remembered was a light from above, and a sensation that he was being lifted upwards...  
  
He came to on what seemed to be a mattress of sorts, such as the kind a doctor keeps in his office. Everything was cold and blurry. He could see Odysseus above him, but he could not discern any details about him. He knew there was no Cheshire smile and that he had taken off his sunglasses, but that was all.  
"What happened?" he asked weakly.  
"We have freed your mind, Wake. You are in the Real World, and have left the Matrix," Odysseus answered.  
"Why is my vision blurry? And why am I talking so quiet?" he asked weakly. He wanted to speak louder, but his vocal chords weren't working correctly. On top of that, his 20/20 vision had given way to blurry eyesight.  
"You have never used your eyes or vocal chords before," Odysseus replied.  
"Of course I have, I was talking to you a few minutes ago!" he tried to shout. It didn't work.  
"Actually, that was a few hours ago. And you used them inside the Matrix...not in the Real World."  
"That's confusing..." Wake said. This was very strange and baffling to him.  
"I know, but you will learn in time. It was the same way for me when I left the Matrix. Now get some rest...you're going to need it..."  
He drifted off to sleep relatively quickly, and his sleep was dreamless...  
  
A few hours later, he awoke, feeling like his natural self. He could see better, and his vocal chords were working. His strength had returned, and he looked down at his body. His well-built body was better than before, he thought. He went in search of the others and bumped into Rusty.  
"Whoa, watch it kid, ya scared me," Rusty cackled. He was no longer wearing the tattered gray jacket, goggles, and a torn-up bullet-proof vest, but instead, loose fitting, hand-sewn clothing that was the colors of a wheat field in summer, stained with grease and sweat. An eye patch covered his missing eye. He had been repairing a few pipes when Wake had bumped into him.  
"Sorry about that..." Wake apologized. He had a question as well. "Hey, I was wondering...how come I'm more muscular than I was a few days ago?"  
"Well, when we pop you out of your pod, it is like you have been born a second time. You are like a helpless child, hairless, blind, and scared. Like a newborn, you're muscle mass is practically zero, Odysseus uses the word 'atrophied' to describe it. We rebuild them with chemicals, cause if you're going to be on the Alchera, you are going to need them. We did that while you were sleeping."  
"Huh...I would have used those chemicals before had I know about them," Wake chuckled. "And what is the Alchera?"  
"Well, for one, those chemicals don't exist in the Matrix. The Matrix is set for the late twentieth century, not the twenty-third century...and the Alchera is this rust bucket we are flying in right now..."  
"Twenty-third century?" Wake said. "What the hell are you talking about? And we're on a ship?"  
"Kid, the Matrix is an illusion, remember? It's like having your brain hooked up to a computer. The supposed prime of mankind, was the twentieth century. Yeah...right..." Rusty said, turning back to his work. A pipe broke, sending coolant spurting into Rusty's face. "Goddamn!" he cursed as the freezing gas hit him. He backed up and swatted it away.  
"I'll take it from here, Rusty," Odysseus said, emerging from his seat on the other side of the room. Like Rusty, his clothes were no longer stylish, but threadbare and home spun, in shades of dark gray. His eyes were dark green, now that he was no longer wearing his shades and Wake's vision had returned. Odysseus motioned for Wake to follow him, and they began walking through a corridor. The walls were covered with panels and wires and pipes, snaking their way around them.  
"As I've told you, the Matrix is an illusion. Not real, but a simulation of the year 1990 and some time after that. We are not sure of the exact date now, but it may be close to the 22nd century or in it."  
"How can you not be sure? Don't you have calendars or digital watches?" Wake asked.  
"No. Most were lost during the war..."  
"War?"  
"With the machines. I'd better show you what I mean..." Odysseus led him into a room, covered in wires like the rest of them. In the center were a ring of what seemed to be reclining chairs, connected to many wires. There were holes in the headrests of the chairs.  
"This is where we jack into the Matrix. This is how we found you, by sitting in these chairs and hooking ourselves up," Odysseus explained.  
"What are you talking about?"  
"Do not tell me you did not notice the coaxial plug in the back of your head when you woke up," said Odysseus.  
"No, I noticed it..." Wake said, remembering how heavy it had been.  
"Well, feel the back of your head again..." Wake reached up and rubbed the spot where the coaxial had been inserted, his fingers running over a cold metal plug.  
"That is how the machines plug people into the Matrix. We use the same idea to get back in to free minds and fight back," Odysseus said. "Take a seat in the chairs, doesn't matter which one. And then I will be free to explain more." A skinny young man with blonde hair walked up and helped him into his chair.  
"Who's this?" Wake asked.  
"This is Bolt, our Operator. You'll learn more about his job later..." Odysseus said. "Now this may feel a little weird..." Wake could feel Bolt guiding a coaxial line into the jack in the back of his head, and then felt it going. There was a click and his ears popped, and he closed his eyes and felt scrunched up. The feeling of being sucked away returned, but then ceased, and he felt as if he was weightless. He opened his eyes and saw that he was standing in a 'room' of infinite white, nothingness going in all directions. He turned around several times, seeing absolutely nothing.  
"This is the Construct," Odysseus started. Wake whirled on the spot and saw that Odysseus had joined him in the endless white. "It is our loading program. From here we can load anything from clothes, to weapons, to training simulations, to ideas, and so on. Anything we need." Odysseus began walking past him, and Wake noticed that two chairs had appeared. They were the exact same as the ones that had been in the abandoned apartment building. Odysseus motioned for him to sit, and he did.  
"So what you are trying to tell me, Odysseus, is that I'm in a computer program?" Wake asked, dazed by the idea.  
"Is it so hard to grasp that idea? That was what the Matrix was. And your hair has returned to the way you usually style it, and those plugs are gone..." Wake's hands shot up to his head, running them through his hair and rubbing where the coaxial was. "We call it residual self image. The mental projection of your electronic self. It isn't that confusing if you figure it out the right way."  
"So...I can look however I want?" Wake asked.  
"As far as clothing and hair style goes, of course..." Odysseus grinned. "Would you like to test that?"  
"Sure! You all seem to walk around in trench coats..." Odysseus snapped out a cell phone. "And why do you always use cell phones?"  
  
"It is how we communicate with our Operator...you'll learn more about that later..." Odysseus told him, shortly before Bolt answered. "Bolt, load the trench coats..." Moments later, racks of trench coats came roaring past at high speeds, as if they were trains tearing down the track. They came to a halt just as fast, displaying many choices of long jackets and trench coats for Wake to look at. He picked one off of the rack and tried it on.  
"Looks good on you, kid," Odysseus grinned. "But, I must continue with what I was saying..." The racks and trench coat disappeared, shooting off in the opposite direction of Wake and Odysseus.  
"So...this isn't real?" Wake asked, remembering that Odysseus had told him it was a computer program.  
"What is real? How do you define real? If you're talking about what you feel, taste, smell, or see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain." Odysseus lifted a remote control, Wake suddenly realizing the presence of an old fashioned television. He began clicking channels, past cartoons and soap operas, until he reached a station where it was merely an image of Wake's home town from the nearby lake. "This is the world as you have been made to see it. As if it is the end of the Twentieth century, one of mankind's greatest eras. After years of hard work, man gave birth to A. I."  
"A. I.? As in Artificial Intelligence?" Wake asked.  
"Correct. But then something happened that turned your wonderful twentieth century city into a forsaken war zone..." Odysseus clicked the remote, changing the channel once again. The gleaming glass skyscrapers were replaced by the blackened skeletons of themselves, the blue sky replaced by a twirling mass of thick and violent clouds, streaked with lightning and heavy rains. The water that had been the nearby lake was gone, giving way to a deep pit, wreckage of ships and other machinery littering the bottom. Suddenly Wake felt the pulling feeling again, and found himself in the lakebed itself. It was scorch and the mud long since caked, splitting and cracked like dry skin. A boat, very similar to the one that his father owned, was full of holes and as cracked as the lakebed. "We aren't entirely sure what was going on back then, but we think that mankind was gathered in celebration at the birth of their creation. I find it almost funny that mankind was slapping itself on the back in congratulation. Almost funny..." He looked up to the sky of rolling obsidian clouds. "The machines that man created were dependent on solar power, so, when the war between machines and man started, mankind scorched the sky in hopes that it would end the machines' threat. But they found a new form of fusion that could keep them going..." They were sucked back to the Construct, where the television was still showing the image of the scorched lakebed. Odysseus pushed another button and the screen showed fields upon fields of fetuses, hanging in placenta-like husks. "It is ironic that, while men depended on machines so heavily, they now depend heavily upon us. Without us, they cannot function. The human body generates more bioelectricity than a 120-volt battery and over 25,000 B.T.U.'s of body heat. The machines turned this to their advantage. There are now endless fields that stretch across the Earth, field upon field where human beings are no longer born, but are grown." On the screen, a thresher-like machine plucked a husk from the stalk, taking the fetus, having deemed it ready to plugged into the Matrix and born within it. "For the longest time, I wouldn't believe it. But then I saw the fields with my own eyes, watched them liquefy the dead so they could be fed intravenously to the living and standing there, facing the efficiency, the pure, horrifying precision, I came to realize the obviousness of the truth." He turned off the television. "The Matrix is merely a system of control and a source of energy. The machines use it to keep you from suspecting that you are being used as a coppertop battery for them." Wake stared at the blank screen of the television with an equally blank stare. A long silence started. "What do you think of this, Wake?" Odysseus asked, breaking the silence.  
"I...I..." Wake stuttered. "I think this is...just...plain...bizarre..."  
"But do you believe it?"  
"In a sense...yes..."  
"Good..." Odysseus and Wake were pulled away one last time, and wound up in the Alchera, unplugged from the Construct. "I am glad. Now get some sleep, you'll need it..."  
  
In the days prior, Wake had been going through some of the drab and boring downloads of computer hacking and standard car driving skills. Bolt had called them routine drills, that everyone had gone through except himself, Bolt being the Zion-born Operator who never entered the Matrix. Wake asked the ship's Operator what he meant by Zion-born and what the Operator did.  
"By Zion-born, I mean that I was never in the Matrix. I never lived in ignorance of what the Machines did to mankind, for I was born in the city of Zion. It is the last city of mankind, where about 25,000 human beings live. And as an Operator, I guide you folks through the Matrix by reading the code. You've been asking how we knew the Agents were coming for you, among other things. Well, I read the code." Bolt gestured to the screens that he used when guiding others through the Matrix. Green code was running down a screen on a few of them.  
"How can you read that? It's nothing but symbols!" Wake said, trying to read some of it.  
"I learned when I was young. I don't see the code any more, but instead I can decipher types of cars, hair colors, where people are standing, what people are wearing, etcetera. Your code is not in there, since you are here, but it pops up when we put you back in."  
Wake was sound asleep in his quarters, a cold, metallic room with a cot that seemed comfortable after all the downloading done in the Construct. The things he had learned in mere minutes when it would have taken years in the Matrix were beyond count. He could now hack computers and hotwire vehicles, and then drive the vehicles with supreme efficiency. But it didn't end there. He now knew several forms of martial arts. Odysseus had told him that it was a key to their survival that they knew these things, or they wouldn't survive long in the Matrix. Karate, kung fu, jujitsu, and so on, were all downloaded into his brain. But it did not stop there, for he was now skilled with weapons, whether they be guns or melee weapons. In one of the training simulations, he had taken on a SWAT team with two Berettas and a few grenades, but in the end, he was gunned down. He emerged from the simulation feeling slight pains.  
"It is because the mind is experiencing pain, therefore, your body experiences pain," Bolt explained. "Like if you get shot in the Matrix, your body will react as those it was shot here."  
He had been lulled to sleep by the low hum of the engines, but he was awoken by a metal grinding noise and loud footsteps. He emerged from his quarters and was nearly bowled over by Adelard, who was running fast down the corridor.  
"What's going on?" Wake asked sleepily, but then remembered that Adelard was a mute. Adelard was not deaf though, and motioned for Wake to follow him. They were greeted by Rusty.  
"Glad you're a Wake," Rusty said. "Get it? A Wake? Awake?" Rusty only received a roll of the eyes from Adelard, who pushed past him. Wake started to follow, but Rusty stopped him. "No really, I am glad you're awake. We've recruited another person from the Matrix."  
"Really? Would I know this person?" Wake asked, eager for it to be someone that he had more in common with than these experienced warriors.  
"Go see for yourself. A female, 15, lived in your area." Wake rushed after Adelard before Rusty could finish. He rushed to the area where they had yanked him from the waters of the machine's draining system and into the Alchera, where the crew was gathered. Odysseus was helping a girl rise to her feet, wrapped in a robe and towel. Even without hair or the stylish clothes, Wake recognized who it was. It was a girl who he had pined for a long time, who had been a high-achiever both in school and socially, and a good friend of his, Janet. In the Matrix, she had blond hair that went halfway down her back, and blue eyes. She had a good build and a shapely figure, and lots of curves as Wake had noted. But now she was not a sight to behold, but merely a helpless child. She was very unsure of what was going on, as he had been.  
"Welcome to the Real World, Janet," Odysseus said, helping her into the ship's medical room. Wake said a silent hurrah as she was led away, and he went back to his quarters. 


	5. Preparing

CHAPTER 5: PREPARING  
It had been a few uncounted months since Wake had been unplugged and had come to believe what Odysseus had told him about the Matrix. That the Matrix was false. That the Matrix was a lie. That the Matrix merely turned him into a battery, or coppertop, as all of the people still plugged into the Matrix were called. And now he was ready for his first journey back into the Matrix. To see this mysterious women called the Oracle. Apparently it was very important to the others, since everyone except Bolt, the operator, was going into the Matrix with him. Janet was also going to see the Oracle.  
"The Oracle has been with us since the beginning of the rebellion from the Matrix," Odysseus told Wake when he was questioned about it.  
"She's pretty much damn all knowing!" Rusty added with his usual rusted chuckle. "Now plug in! We need to get our guns!" Wake nodded, and took one of the chairs. Bolt came around to each one and plugged them into the Matrix with the normal clicking and zipping sounds.  
"Your turn, Wake. Ya ready?" Bolt asked as he held the plug up to Wake's head.  
"You bet I am," he said, and Bolt sent him in. As he had done when Odysseus was telling him what the Matrix was, he opened his eyes to see the Construct, the endless white stretching around. He was still in normal clothes. In fact, it was the gee that he was been wearing in the sparring test with Odysseus a couple of weeks ago. He popped out his cell phone and called Bolt. "Bolt, I'm going to need some different clothes, I think I'd look a bit conspicuous wearing a gee in the Matrix."  
"What you wear does not matter, Wake," Odysseus interrupted behind him. "Agents do not see you like you see me or I see you. That is why we are strutting around in trench coats and shades. It helps us identify you in crowds of coppertops, while our clothes matter not to Agents."  
"Oh...right...but still, I don't want to wear this gee..."  
"Good point. Bolt, load the a set of clothes for him..." Soon he had picked out a good set of clothes and a black trench coat that went down his leg just above his ankles. Then came the sunglasses. Small racks of shades came rushing by, and stopped on either side of the humans. The veteran warriors of the Alchera were quick to choose pairs, but Janet and Wake took their time.  
"Wake, what do you think of these?" Janet had tried on a pair of Hugo Boss glasses, the lenses tinged blue with a silver wire frame. The rest of her outfit consisted of tight navy blue pants, a small, tight shirt, and a smart vest. Her blonde hair was done up in a ponytail, and her face was glowing with happiness, as she had been able to choose clothes that she liked without paying for them. In the Matrix, she had been renowned at school for her shopping sprees. She looks so much better in the Matrix than she does in the Real World, thought Wake. In the Real World, she was dressed in the ripped and grease-stained sweaters that most of the free men and women wore, and she usually looked disheveled.  
"I think they look great, Janet," Wake replied with a smile. She smiled back, and he forced himself to turn away before she noticed his line of vision was wandering from her face. He continued searching through the sunglasses, but was finding it difficult to choose out a pair that suited him. He turned to Odysseus. "Odysseus, what kind of glasses do you wear?"  
"AO-Eyewear," Odysseus replied smartly. "Look over there if you would like some like mine..."  
Wake rummaged through the racks of sunglasses until he found the AO- Eyewear sunglasses that he wanted. They looked somewhat similar to Odysseus's, but the frame was the color of gunmetal, and the glass was tinted dark green. He tried them on.  
"Perfect," Odysseus said, smiling. Wake grinned back, adjusting the shades on his face.  
"Anything else you need?" Bolt asked over the phone.  
"Yes..." Odysseus said, looking to the others. "Guns...lots of guns..." The racks of clothes raced away and were immediately replaced with racks of guns. The variety was astounding, from a pirate's flintlock to a Civil War Colt revolver, from an American World War II sniper rifle to a M16 assault rifle. Pistols, rifles, shotguns, automatics, all laying in front of them on tables and hanging on racks. Clips sat in piles sat in buckets and baskets, piled on top of ammo belts.  
"Grab what you need, never know what you are going to run into," Odysseus says, grabbing a pistol and putting it in his trench coat. "Keep in mind that you need to keep them concealed, or keep them in the car. Also keep in mind that there are swords or hand-to-hand combat weapons." The others started grabbing guns, but Wake started being picky, looking for the guns he thought would do the best in his care.  
"Hurry up, Wake, we don't have all day!" Rusty hollered over to him, grabbing a double-barrel shotgun from the late 19th century and a bandolier covered in shotgun cartridges. He clipped the shotgun to the bandolier and slung it over his back. He reached for two Colt revolvers and slid them into the holsters at his waist, the belt from which they were hanging from also covered in bullets. A handful of tiny cans marked "Hicks Percussion Caps" was shoved into his pockets. He hid what he could under the tattered trench coat and slipped on his goggles.  
The others were busy grabbing what they could as well. Artemis seemed to be more into martial arts than firing guns, but she grabbed two Ingrams Mac 11 machine pistols nonetheless, along with a few clips. Adelard grabbed an AK-47, placing the spare magazines in his pockets, and a KG9 for back-up. Janet had already placed a pistol in her vest. Wake looked over the display of artillery and finally picked up two Desert Eagles and several spare clips.  
"That's the gun that Agents use," Rusty noted. "Very deadly, strong kickback..."  
"Bolt, load the Hummer," Odysseus said over the phone, taking no notice of Rusty. The Hummer came into being next to them, the black paint an extreme contrast to the endless white of the Construct. They packed as many armaments as they could into it, the glove compartment stuffed with pistols, extra clips for numerous guns in the utility box between the driver and passenger, a grenade launcher under the second set of seats, as well as a sniper rifle and two M16 assault rifles.  
"We're finished with the car and guns, load melee arms." Odysseus reached to a table that had previously been holding shotguns and grabbed a one-edged Chinese broadsword with nine rings linked in the dull side. Artemis grabbed three different knives, one for stabbing, two for throwing, and Adelard grabbed some brass knuckles and the Arabian blades. "And now we are finished with those. Put us in..." 


	6. The Oracle

CHAPTER 6: THE ORACLE  
The Matrix snapped together like a puzzle, the pieces of it flying at them and stopping in their appropriate locations in the code. They stood in the middle of it, with their black H2 Hummer just outside the wall, in a wide alley. They lost sight of it as a wall slid into place, then a door frame flying into the gap, then the door itself, then the door handle, then the individual screws holding the knob to the door, drilling in one at the a time. All finished quickly, and they were standing in an abandoned warehouse, boxes around them. Next to them was a desk, and a phone jumped in the window and landed on the desk, chord and all. It rung, and Odysseus answered.  
"We're in," he answered before the caller said anything.  
"Good," Bolt said on the other end. "Keep in touch." Odysseus hung up.  
"Alright, this should be simple, but there are always the risks and dangers. Don't stay on your cell phone for too long, the System will track you. And don't do anything stupid that will get you noticed. Keep your guns hidden," Odysseus said, reminding them of what to do. "And if we are caught by Agents, then we run. Don't try to run them over with the Hummer, they will smash it with mere blows..." Rusty pointed to a scar on his jaw and then pointed to another on his forearm. Artemis rolled her eyes at him. "...and if they catch you on foot, you fight them to run, and run hard." Odysseus locked eyes with Adelard before moving to the door and opening it, revealing the Hummer sitting next to a few trash cans. They all climbed in, Adelard at the wheel, Rusty calling shotgun, and sped off down the alley. Adelard spun the wheel and calmly pulled onto Main Street just behind a large truck. Wake could tell he did not feel safe with such a large vehicle blocking them, and the driver quickly got around it.  
Wake looked out the window to the streets. It was a Saturday and the holiday season had just started. He wondered what his parents were doing right now, without him. He had left so abruptly, and had been enjoying himself thoroughly with the ability to learn martial arts in mere minutes and defy gravity by running up walls. Odysseus had told him that he could not visit his parents, for they could easily turn into an Agent if he kept in their line of sight long enough. It had happened before to a young man who had survived a ship crash in the Real World but was stuck in the Matrix, a few years ago. Odysseus remembered it all too well, it seemed, and wished that no such thing would happen to Wake.  
The Hummer kept going until it reached a decrepit apartment building, in healthier condition than the Sunset Homes, and still occupied.  
"This is our stop..." Rusty said. "You takin' them in, Odys?" Odysseus nodded, slightly annoyed by Rusty's tacky shortening of his name, and got out of the car, motion for Wake and Janet alone to follow. He nodded to Adelard, who made a U-turn and parked in front of the cafe across the street. The trio headed into the building, Wake and Janet standing side by side, keeping just on Odysseus' heels.  
The captain walked up to the intercom, buzzing the apartment that obviously belonged to the Oracle. "Hello? May I asking who this is?" replied a female voice.  
"This is Odysseus, captain of the Alchera. We are here to speak with the Oracle."  
  
"Then come right up!" the voice said cheerfully. Odysseus headed for the door. They crowded into the elevator with a few inhabitants of the dismal apartment building, and made their way out onto the floor on which the Oracle lived. Wake wondered to himself why such an all-knowing woman lived in such an austere environment. They arrived at the door, and Odysseus rapped the door with his knuckles lightly but audible enough for someone to hear inside. The door opened to reveal a young black women.  
"Welcome, Odysseus. I see you have two new recruits today," the woman smiled.  
"Are you the Oracle?" Janet asked.  
"Far from it, Janet, far from it." The woman lead them into the lounge of the Oracle's apartment. "She has been waiting for you though. She always is."  
"I know," Odysseus smiled, having been here many times before. The woman nodded and smiled back, then peeked into the kitchen through a drapery of beads and thread. She turned back to them, and gestured for them to enter.  
"The Oracle will see you now." Without a reply, Odysseus motioned for Wake to enter the kitchen, putting a hand on Janet's shoulder to hold her back. Wake looked back to the others, but Odysseus gave a reassuring nod, and he moved into the kitchen.  
The kitchen was warm, cluttered with various papers. He took a closer look at one. A recipe for chocolate-chip cookies. The one underneath was for peanut butter, then another for apple crisps. Yum, desserts...oh wait, this is the Matrix...  
"It may be the Matrix's representation of cookies, but it still tastes good, hun, especially if I made them," came a voice that seemed just as warm as the kitchen itself. He turned away from the recipes to spy a little old woman shuffling about by the oven, holding a tray of cookies. Her dress, like the rest of the room, was green, with floral designs dotting ever other inch. She peered at him over the rim of her spectacles, setting down the tray on the table and putting her hands on her hips. "Well well, you must be Wake! Come, sit down, don't feel shy." Wake took a few steps towards the table, but merely bowed rather than sat.  
"Yes, I am Wake," he said quickly. He removed his shades, tucking them into his pocket.  
"Pleasure to meet you," the woman said, beaming widely and taking off her glasses. "I am the Oracle." Wake shook her hand, unsure what to make of the woman who could supposedly see his future. "Well, you are very much what I expected to see! While I know your future, I couldn't put my finger on your appearance! You are a very handsome young man, easy to see why she likes you..."  
"Who?" he asked eagerly.  
"Not too bright though, if you can't figure that out. Still, doesn't take took much thought to get into your position, does it?"  
"I...uh...I guess not," he replied, not sure what she meant.  
"You were very accepting of what Odysseus told you about where we are now. That's what I meant. Didn't take too much thought for you to decide that what Odysseus was telling you was the truth and that there was nothing to it."  
"Right...I had seen some things that couldn't be explained otherwise."  
"Oh? Like what?"  
  
"Agents using my friends' bodies' as hosts so that they could kill Turbine of the Melchizedek. I witnessed it." The Oracle sat, giving a sigh.  
"I'm sorry you had to see that before you were ready, but might as well have been then than now. You never know when something will go wrong."  
"That is Rusty's way of thinking..."  
"And you think he's a nut..." the Oracle chuckled. "He ain't all there, ya know, but he hasn't lost all of his marbles yet." She gave another wide smile. She thought for a moment, then spoke again. "The Melchizedek you say? They brought in a new recruit, and they left just before you came. The kid called himself Carp."  
"Carp? Interesting name..."  
"Not as interesting as Wake though, eh?" the Oracle asked, raising her brows. "Has something to do with surfing, doesn't it?"  
"Yes m'am," Wake answered shortly. The Oracle nodded, then went into thought for a moment.  
"Well, I can tell that Odysseus didn't bring you here to teach me to surf or to talk about past events. It is the future you are here to learn about..." She closed her eyes. "I can see that you will be a valuable member to the crew of the Alchera, Wake. But your mind has not always been there. You will have to make a choice, between your past and your future."  
Wake thought for a moment, while the Oracle reopened her eyes, replaying the words in his mind. "What do you mean by choosing the past or future?"  
"I can only tell you what I know, kid, and that is always worth something," the Oracle said, taking out a pack of cigarettes labeled "Double Destiny." She lit one and smoked for a bit while Wake thought.  
"But you can see the future, can't you? That is what the others said."  
"I can, but I cannot see past decisions that you or I do not understand. I gave you the tidbit I could give, and it should be enough. Does that make sense to you?"  
"Yes...but how will I know when the choice comes?"  
"You will know. They always know when the time comes."  
"They?"  
"The other rebels."  
"You have spoken to all of them?"  
"Of course! They all have a future, and they are all in control of it. That is where the factor of choice comes in." She rose and shuffled over to the counter. "Cookies? They are fresh out of the oven."  
"No thank you. The fact that they aren't real makes them less appetizing."  
"Suit yourself," the Oracle said, taking the cigarette out of her mouth and smiling. "Take care, kid." Wake nodded gratefully and slipped his shades back on, giving the green kitchen with the orange cupboards one last look as he left. The Oracle gave him one last wide smile, putting the cigarette in an ash tray.  
"How'd it go, Wake?" Janet asked as he entered the lounge.  
"Whatever was said in there was for your own ears, mind you," Odysseus butted in. "No one needs to know except for the Oracle and you."  
"Then all I shall say is that it was good, and does not sound like my future will be too harsh..."  
"Let us hope..." Odysseus said, putting a hand on Wake's shoulder. "Now Janet, it is your turn." Janet glanced at Wake for a moment, then entered the kitchen.  
She has lovely eyes... Wake thought to himself as she walked away. And a very attractive ass... His brain stopped wandering for a moment and he gave Janet some advice. "Be prepared for some difficult thinking. It's mind-boggling..." 


	7. Une Serie Noire

CHAPTER 7: UNE SERIE NOIRE  
Like Wake, Janet's prediction from the Oracle had remained a secret to the others, at Odysseus' bidding. He was worried that if the others knew of the Oracle's prophecy, it might influence their minds, making the choices they would eventually make harder ones.  
"Has your prediction come true yet, Odysseus?" Wake asked.  
"No, it has not. And if it did, the Oracle would give me another. Your predictions come true until the time of your death. Rusty's first prediction has come true."  
"Some time ago, in fact! Your fiery personality will lead to the deaths of many, but in the end, you will be a savior for some. It turned out to be good! The deaths of many meant a whole damn SWAT team, and savior to some meant that I saved the crew of the Alchera and the Logos! Boy, that was a good day! Of course, then that Agent broke Adelard's vocal chords..." Adelard turned and gave Rusty a nasty look, and Rusty stopped talking about the incident. "Of course, I'm still waiting to see what happens with my current prediction..."  
They had all crowded back into the Hummer and were driving down the street, stopping at the intersection of First and Charlemagne, then turning left onto Charlemagne. The streets were still crowded as they had been earlier, more than crowded if that was possible. It was midday, and the malls and shops were packed to the point of exploding. Wake had never remembered the city so crowded. Probably because I never lived in the city... Wake pondered. He also thought of glimpse at the future. You will have to make a choice, between your past and your future... he muttered in his mind. What could that mean? He then let go of it for a bit, knowing that it would come to him eventually, sifting through his thoughts lazily. He jumped when Odysseus' mobile phone started ringing. The captain picked it up and answered.  
"Bolt?" Odysseus asked instinctively.  
"No, this is Operator Jack of the Melchizedek! I'm glad you are in the area..."  
"What's wrong, Jack?" Odysseus asked urgently but, as always, calmly. There was a brief pause as Jack hit a few keys on the keyboard on his ship, hard enough to be audible in the car.  
"The Captain and company have hit a nasty situation, my friend. They went to see the Oracle about our new recruit and then a SWAT team appeared out of no where!"  
Odysseus sighed. "Probably because there were too many of us in the direct vicinity."  
"Maybe. Still, no Agents have...never mind, a black Lexus just pulled into the area...along with two more SWAT vans..."  
"Where are they now? And is any of the crew harmed or dead?"  
"No one has been shot yet, and they are at the intersection of Charlemagne and Black. Get their quick, it's getting hairy real fast."  
"We're on our way," Odysseus replied, and hung up on Jack. He dialed the Alchera's operator. "Bolt, are you watching?"  
"Yessir, Captain, looks like the Mel has hit trouble."  
"Indeed. Monitor the situation, help their crew if possible. When we get to the intersection, I'll call you again, to find their locations."  
"Will do." Odysseus hung up on him, and put a hand on the hilt of his katana.  
"Are you all ready? The plan is that we split up, head for buildings away from the scene, most likely from the next street over. Adelard, make a U-turn and head for the intersection, then turn right..." Adelard nodded, turning the Hummer around and pounding the pedal all the way down, speeding up to the intersection and quickly spinning onto the next street over, which was Boobrie Street. He stopped the car about a block away from the blockade that had been set up by the SWAT team. Numerous vans were parked there. But among them, Wake noticed a familiar face. Perfectly combed hair, green-black suit, mirrored rectangular shades, and an audio feed.  
Smith.  
The Agent put a hand to his audio feed, listening intently to whatever information the System was relaying to him about the situation.  
"Odysseus, an Agent," he whispered cautiously, jabbing a thumb in the general direction.  
"There are three, be careful. Do not let them see you." Odysseus turned to the others, who were getting out of the car with him. "We'll go into the alley of the building next to the surrounded building. Most of the SWAT team are at the front, so keep from view." Odysseus turned on his cell phone briefly, getting a description of the building from Bolt. He then clicked it shut. "We shall go in pairs of two, each on a different floor. Rusty and I shall take floor nine, where Captain Arohirohi and Bishop are. Quicksilver and their new recruit, Carp, are on floor seven. Artemis and Janet shall be there. Adelard and Wake will provide assistance to Voodoo and Glitch on floor four."  
"Why not take the roof and go down, Odys?" Rusty questioned.  
"Because..." Odysseus looked up as a helicopter zipped by overhead, full of SWAT and with heavy artillery to boot. "That is why. Now climb. We must act fast. SWAT have entered the building, but only a few, and have spread out. The crew of the Melchizedek are likely hiding from them, but it is not long before they are found." Odysseus climbed up the ladder, Rusty behind him, making his way for the ninth floor. Artemis and Janet followed up. Wake made sure he got on the ladder behind Janet. She hung back and talked to him.  
"I'm not sure I'm ready for this..." she said, a worried look on her face. "I'm capable of killing, but I'm not sure I want to."  
"I'm afraid that is what this has come to," Wake sighed, sympathetically. "At least we are capable." Adelard motioned with annoyance for them to hurry up, slinging his AK-47 over his back. Wake smiled nervously at Janet. "It will be okay. We won't end up like Turbine." Janet smiled, though the thought of Turbine's death was not exactly comforting, even though they both had never met him. Wake had been hit by it worse once he knew about Agents. The fact that he and his friends had been in the classroom next to the phone is what gave the Agents the ability to kill Turbine. Had they not been there, Turbine would still be standing with the others in that building. Wake shook his head as if to get the thought from his mind, and kept climbing.  
"See you soon!" Janet whispered, climbing up further as Wake and Adelard slipped silently into the window of the building. It was an empty room, thankfully, and they left the abandoned apartment, entering the hallway. The hallway had even worse lighting, having no windows. The filth and dust that coated everything from the broken light fixtures to the shaggy rug seemed to add to this darkness. Adelard seemed to think it a good thing.  
"No windows, they won't see us from the street..." Wake started, but Adelard put a hand to his mouth to hush him. He put an ear to the door of the next room over, to confirm that it was empty. It was, and they entered quickly, opening the window and jumping from the fire escape through a window into the surrounded building. They were in.  
Adelard took out a permanent pen and scrawled something on the wall quickly. It read "Split up, I'll go left, you go right. It is likely the others will be fighting someone." He tucked the Sharpie back into his pocket.  
"Gotcha..." Wake agreed, heading out into the hallway of the SWAT- filled building, with Adelard behind him. They glanced at each other, bringing out their guns, and went their separate ways. Wake found this building even more dilapidated and dirty than the building next door, and many even more than the Sunset Homes down the street from his old home. Remembering what had occurred between him and the rest of the crew of the Alchera at the Sunset Homes, he supposed that the crew of the Melchizedek used this old apartment building as a base in the Matrix. He also took notice of the bullet holes and smashed pottery that he found along the way.  
He turned a corner in the hallway, one of his Desert Eagle's in his hand, and ran into a SWAT from behind, bouncing off the protective armor.  
"Holy shit, I found another one!" the SWAT hollered, giving away Wake's position. Pumping the shotgun, the SWAT fired and the scatter shot nearly ripped into his torso, but he spun back behind the corner. The SWAT fired another shot as he slipped out of view, covering the wall with small holes, the dust shaken off of the wall by the sound waves and the bullets. Wake, thinking quickly as the soldier took aim again, duck beneath the shot and delivered a solid kick to the man's shin. He flew off his feet, landing on Wake, but Wake used his training in Jujitsu to pick him up again and through him into the wall where the shotgun had weakened it. He flew through the wall, knock unconscious or otherwise. Wake turned the corner again, now confronted by another gunner or two. The scatter shots were pumped at him, sending bullets everywhere. He leaped forwards and up, over the shots, then landed in a roll. He rose to his feet with such speed as to take the soldier off guard, delivering an uppercut to his chin. He staggered backwards, surprised, but went down as Wake dropped low and swept his feet out from under him. Wake grabbed him and used him as a human shield, the other SWAT aiming precisely but not wanting to shoot his companion. Instead of waiting, he threw his hostage at the soldier, knocking them both to the floor and grabbing one of the shotguns.  
Wake crept along, encountering no more SWAT for now, hearing in the distance the speaker phone of the police outside as well as the walkie- talkies that every SWAT had. Suddenly, the megaphone ranting became louder. He wandered into room 101, a spacious and empty, concrete room. A window let in the Matrix's representation of air, as well as a good view of the blockade outside. He peered out cautiously, seeing the armored vans and police cars. A single black Lexus was parked with the rest of them, three suited men standing their. Smith, Brown, and Jones... Wake reminded himself. Suddenly, two of the Agents disappeared, replaced with confused SWAT. They had switched hosts. Only Smith remained by the car.  
He lingered a bit too long. A soldier walked through a squeaky door on the far side of the room. He gave a shout and fired his assault rifle, the bullets ricocheting off the floor and colliding with the wall as Wake dodged best he could. He fired a single bullet back, blowing the trigger and handle to pieces, rendering the armament useless. The SWAT gave a worried look as Wake took aim again...and his body began to blur. Wake looked over his shoulder briefly, noticing that Smith had now changed hosts. The new host was now standing directly in front of him.  
"Mr. Thornton!" Smith said, not moving a muscle. "I see you have joined the insolent fools that try to fight us."  
"Better than being a battery," Wake retorted, cocking his Desert Eagle.  
"So it would seem..." Agent Smith said, a smug grin appearing on his face as he brought out his own Desert Eagle from his suit jacket. He squeezed the trigger at the same time as Wake, the round drilling into the wall behind Wake. Wake's shot blew a hole in the ground. The gun flares reflected off their glasses as they fired again and again. Wake nervously pulled the trigger rapidly, remembering Odysseus' teachings about Agents. They could punch through walls, switch hosts at any given moment, dodge all bullets shot at them, and so on. They seemed invincible to Wake. You fought only to run. Thing is, the doors were behind Smith. Smith bound forwards as he fired, his shiny shoes kicking up dust. He squeezed his trigger one final time, leaving the one clip that Agents came with empty. Wake watched in terror as the bullet left a neat hole in his thigh, and he staggered backwards, falling below the window in a cloud of grime. Agent Smith tossed his pistol aside, knowing he had emptied it, and approached the fallen boy.  
"Pathetic..." Smith muttered. "Usually it is much harder to put one of you down."  
"Hold it!" came a loud call, and a man jumped in front of Wake, meaning to defend him. He was wearing a gray trench coat full of bullet holes, a white shirt stained with sweat, and camouflage pants that were dirty and stained. His brown hair was cut short and spiked up, his goatee slight and neat. His glasses curved almost violently to match the curves of his face, but retained a round shape nonetheless. He turned to Wake. "Kid, as soon as you can, run."  
"I can't, he shot me in the leg!"  
"Ignore it!" He pulled two Uzi's from his trench coat as Smith approached further, his face masked with furious hatred. The man took aim and sent dozens of bullets at the Agent. Smith stopped stomping forwards and became a blur of motion, moving faster than humanly possible. Every bullet hit the wall on the far side of the room, missing the inhuman blur completely. The suited body bent in every direction, keeping balance while doing the most impossible positions. The magazines for the Uzi's were finally empty. He tossed them aside, pulling out loaded Uzi's as one fluid motion. Smith proceeded to close the gap between himself and the renegades, but stopped again to dodge the hail of lead, blurring from here to there and there to here. The man emptied those and reached for more guns. There were none. He panicked and glanced at me, turning around just in time to have his jaw shattered by a powerful blow that sent him reeling. Smith smiled confidently, kicking at the man's kneecap. It bent in ways it shouldn't have, and he nearly fell on top of me, screaming in agony as I rolled to the next window.  
"Mr. Robertson! What a surprise," Smith taunted sarcastically. "Never the bright one, were you?" He pulled back his fist, letting it fall, shattering ribs. He pulled back the other fist, letting it fall likewise. He did this repeatedly, as Wake stood by, trying to reach for his pistol. He fumbled with his trench coat, his mind spinning as he heard the sickening crunches of Mr. Robertson's ribs, sternum, and other bones, splintering, and he noticed that blood was gushing from his wound. Agent Smith's blows gained speed, until they were blurs like Smith himself had been when fired at. The punches hit rapidly. Wake finally brought out his pistol, but it was too late. The man had been beaten into a pulp, and Smith lifted the lifeless form by the throat with a single hand. He aimed one last punch. Wake pulled the trigger, two bullets whizzing past Smith as he simply bent forwards at normal speed. He returned to his task of eliminating Mr. Robertson with pure satisfaction. A final blow to the chest sent the man out of the window. Wake looked away as he landed on the roof of a car, which was crushed.  
"He is dead, Mr. Thornton. It is...inevitable that you shall join him..." Smith sneered. He walked directly in front of Wake, smiling smugly as ever. Wake aimed but failed to pull the trigger as Smith kicked the Desert Eagle from his hands and up to his. The firearm was disposed by being thrown out the window, leaving Wake disarmed. Smith stopped and fixed his tie, looking down upon him through the mirrored sunglasses.  
He pulled back his fist again, preparing to beat the wounded boy into a bloody pulp. The punch started to fly, but then, so did Smith. Adelard came from behind, his feet firmly planted in the small of Smith's back, the powerful kick propelling them both forwards. Agent Smith's limbs and head jerked back as his torso went forwards and out the window. Adelard spun in midair, grabbing the window sill as Smith fell to the street below. The cops had removed the dead man from the shattered car, but Smith hit the car immediately afterwards. Adelard kept a firm grip on the sill as the plaster exploded around him, pulling himself up. He flipped back into the room, rolling away from the window.  
"Adelard, I've been shot!" Wake said, compressing the wound. Adelard looked out the window for a good moment, realizing that they had lost another. He punched the wall and grabbed Wake by the shoulder, lifting him to his feet.  
"Can you walk?" Adelard asked silently, moving his lips slow enough for Wake to read them.  
"Yes, but it hurts terribly," Wake replied, finally understanding. He limped alongside Adelard, who pulled out his AK-47 as the sounds of another combat reached their ears. Wake had one Desert Eagle left, but there were enough clips to keep him active in combat.  
"Voodoo of the Melchizedek," Adelard mouthed as he pointed at the door, only rasping noises leaving his throat. Wake nodded that he understood, and opened the door in front of them.  
The scene was brilliant, as Voodoo laid down SWAT quickly and violently. Voodoo was dressed in a wild dark green trench coat, buttoned down the front tightly. Her shades were small ovals of green-tinted glass, serving her only to look her best when fighting coppertops. Her hair and the rest of her face were hidden by green bandannas, though a red ponytail poked out of the back. Even without the mask, Wake would not have seen her features. She was moving too fast for anything to be distinguishable.  
"Take that ya coppertop!" the Haitian rebel shouted, bringing her wooden staff to a soldier's kneecap, breaking it with an audible snap. She finished him by spinning it up to rap his chin powerfully. The soldier fell back, moaning in pain, as Voodoo flipped up and over the head of another. She dropped low and hit the back of a soldier's legs, sending the armored policeman to the ground. She spun expertly and drove the spear tip through the armor and into the unfortunate man's chest. Wake gave some cover fire, gunning down a soldier that was giving Voodoo trouble with his shotgun.  
"Thanks kid," Voodoo shouted quickly. The spear flew forwards like a bullet from a gun, puncturing the chest of another soldier. The spear jerked back suddenly, letting the stabbed man drop, and the dull wooden end hitting the SWAT behind Voodoo in the thigh, forcing him back. Voodoo flipped through the air, spinning wildly, and her staff made a cracking sound as it made contact with the guy's head, physically throwing him across the room. Wake put down the another SWAT with a barrage of bullets. He snapped in another cartridge as Voodoo pole-vaulted into the one of the two remaining, launching him into the wall and nearly through it. One last SWAT remained, but scampered into the next apartment, blocking the door with something heavy.  
"Hiya fellas!" Voodoo said cheerfully, giving Adelard and Wake both a hug. "Glad you could join us."  
"Yeah, wasn't exactly what we were planning on, but Odysseus insists we be prepared for anything," Wake said calmly, though his wound pained him as she hugged him. She slid off her bandanna and mask, tucking them into her trench coat's pockets. She looked about twenty or twenty-one, now that her face could be seen.  
"As does Captain Arohirohi," she stated, taking out her bandanna to wipe the sweat from her brow. "Have you guys found Glitch? The SWAT forced us to split." Wake froze up. He didn't know what to tell her. He hadn't even really thought about the man who had defended him briefly. Adelard could not speak, and was not there to witness Glitch's last stand. He'd have to tell her.  
"Voodoo...I...I..." he stuttered, trying to think of something. "The Agent..." She got the message before he could finish. Tears welled up in her green eyes. She looked blankly at the wall.  
"Why...? Why didn't he run?" Voodoo asked, to no one in particular.  
"He died trying to save me from the Agent..." Wake started. The door that the soldier had gone in opened.  
"Speaking of Agents..." Voodoo snarled, turning with a war cry and rushing Agent Brown like a woman gone mad. Her staff became a whirlwind of fury, beating heavily at Agent Brown with blows that would have broken any ordinary man's bones easily. Brown was no man. He merely warded off the beating with his forearms, extending them calmly, his face lacking any expression. Voodoo gave a war cry again, this time in French, and drove the spear through Agent Brown's right forearm. He looked at it without any surprise or shock or anguish. There was no blood. His head slowly turned back to lock eyes with Voodoo, who looked confident, but realized too late that he did not mind the wound one bit. A backhand slap knocked her against the wall, and she sunk down to the floor. Agent Brown pulled the spear from his arm and snapped it in two on his knee, tossing the shards to his sides. With the arm that had been skewered, he sent a blow at Voodoo. She rolled to the side, and Brown's fist went through the wall, crushing it with little effort. Voodoo went wide-eyed as he stomped at her shin, his foot crunching through the floor boards. He pulled up, but his foot was stuck. He frowned, as if confused, and looked up. He had an AK-47 bullet in his head at point blank. The body sparked and fizzled, returning to the original form of the soldier, his foot still in the floor and a large, gory hole through his right forearm.  
Voodoo got up, recovering her glasses, which had been cracked to the point of uselessness. She threw them down to the body of the SWAT. "Let's get our asses out of here, before any more come. Adelard, kill them before they become hosts..." Adelard acknowledged, spinning around and riddling a door with rounds. A surprised and quite dead SWAT fell flat on his face. Voodoo nodded. "Nice shot." She turned and ran down a hallway, pulling out a few throwing stars. Two SWAT turned into the hallway, toting assault rifles, but Voodoo's throwing stars sunk deep into their throats, and they crumpled to the ground. Another two emerged from his search of an apartment, startled to see three figures in trench coats approaching. Voodoo ripped the rifle from the first soldier's grasp, whacking it over the head of his cohort. He kicked out, trying to defend himself, but Voodoo's steady hands grappled the leg at full kick, rendering the kick harmless. She delivered a solid kick to his groin, completing the Double Flying Butterflies move she had started.  
Adelard emptied the ammo left in his AK-47, tossing it down. Another soldier brought out a cudgel, having just been relieved of his firearm by Voodoo, but not killed. Adelard bombarded him with a few solid punches, winding the SWAT momentarily. Then Adelard attacked with a combination that Wake recognized as the Tiger Leopard Double Fist. His muscular partner grabbed the shoulders of the SWAT, destabilizing him by pulling him forwards. Another punch broke his collar bone, finishing the combination, but leaving the SWAT gasping on the floor.  
Another SWAT charged for Wake. The boy thought fast, and took aim. Pulling the trigger merely let Wake know that the magazine was empty. With time slipping from his grasp, Wake leaped into the air, arms extended from his sides. The kick he delivered was the best he had ever done, sending the guard flying backwards, off the ground, into two others, who crashed through the door of the apartment and lay in a heap. Another SWAT approached, but this time he was ready. He performed one martial arts move that he enjoyed doing, which he lovingly called the Pissed Swan. Wake waved both arms vigorously while rearing his head backwards. The SWAT gave him a look like he was some sort of idiot, but was watching the arm movements, expecting some sort of punch. The trap worked; giving a squawking cry, Wake rammed his head forwards, head-butting his opponent full in the face. The SWAT fell back, clutching his forehead and nose, dropping his rifle. Wake used fancy footwork to kick the rifle up to him, and emptied the clip into the SWAT and the three behind him.  
Adelard raised his hand, his sign of calling dibs on the last soldier. He quickly ran over and the others had to turn away as Adelard performed a wrestling move that was called "PMS," or "Painful Message to the Scrotum." He rose from his screaming victim, and kicked him in the side, sending him sliding across the floor down to the end of the hallway, where a vase fell from the table he bumped and landed on his head.  
"Well, that's that. If that doesn't avenge Glitch, then nothing will," Voodoo said, holding back her tears this time. Then Wake's cell phone rang.  
"Wake speaking," he answered.  
"Wake, this is Odysseus. We have reached the others, as have Artemis and Janet. They are safe for now. Have you found Voodoo and Glitch?"  
"They got Glitch, Odysseus. The Agent gave him no chance."  
"And Voodoo?"  
"She is here, and very much alive. She's only got a bruised cheek from being backhanded by an Agent." There was silence on the line for a moment.  
"Get to the elevator, Wake. It is still operating. Go to the tenth floor, then go down the fire escape and jump to the next building. Make your way to the Hummer. We'll meet you there." Odysseus hung up. Wake told the others what he had said, and they marched down the hallway to the elevator. A single SWAT was guarding it, but Voodoo took care of him with another well-placed throwing star. They crowded into the elevator.  
"Floor ten," Wake said to Voodoo, who pushed the button.  
"I hope Odysseus remembers that helicopter," Voodoo sighed. "It nearly got the Captain earlier."  
"It didn't see us when we entered," Wake replied. "But we were on floor four earlier."  
The elevator stopped on floor ten. They stepped out calmly. Adelard gripped the pair of Arabic swords tightly, brass knuckles also on his fists. Voodoo still held several throwing stars, but she slipped out a sais for close combat. Wake reloaded his Desert Eagle, being the only one with a gun out. It had become obvious to him that Voodoo had no use for guns in her combat style.  
They approached the window where the fire escape was located cautiously. So far, they had not encountered any SWAT or Agents. But they could appear at any second.  
"Looks pretty safe to me..." Wake said, breathing easy. Maybe they would get out without any more pummeling or shooting. The lone SWAT that rounded the corner at the window changed that view quickly. Voodoo rolled her eyes and hurled a throwing star. The SWAT held up his rifle, and the star hit it just above the trigger.  
"Useless junk," he cursed as he threw it down and backed towards the window. Computerized noises filled their ears, and Agent Jones stood where the SWAT had been.  
"You will not be eluding our grasp this time," Agent Jones scoffed with mechanical tranquility, cracking his knuckles. Adelard charged him, aiming to dice him to pieces with his Arabic blades. He swung a few times, but Jones did some curious-looking dodges, bending into positions where humans would normally fall over. The large man swung with both blades, spreading his arms wide as Jones dodged again. But now the Agent took action, grabbing one of Adelard's arms with his right hand. With his free hand, Adelard tried to lop off Jones' head, but Agent Jones intercepted it, extending an arm to stop the rebel's blow from gaining speed, then grabbing the wrist. Jones delivered a powerful kick to Adelard's stomach, and he flew down the hallway.  
Voodoo stepped up to the plate next, hurling her remaining throwing stars at Agent Jones. Agent Jones bent backwards, his body almost at a 90 degree angle. The stars shredded the wall just above him, missing him entirely. He stood up again, tidying up the cuffs of his jacket, then looked menacingly back at Voodoo. She brought out her other sais, aiming numerous, light blows at him. The blades skimmed across his arms as he tried to stop the hits. Voodoo spun around with a snapping motion. They stopped for a moment as Jones looked to the ground. His tie had been removed, he realized angrily. Voodoo smiled, jumping up to kick Agent Jones in the face.  
"Nice try..." Jones muttered, grabbing Voodoo around the waist, grappling her in his powerful grip. "But like I said, you will not be eluding our grasp this time." He spun around in a circle, Voodoo trapped in his outstretched arms, and threw her into the wall. She slumped down, but started to crawl away. Jones clasped his hands together and swung. Wake stared in terror as Voodoo narrowly avoided joining the wall in being devastated. A large hole was now in the wall as Jones stopped his spin. He moved in to finish Voodoo...  
"Hey buddy, over here!" Wake hollered, not knowing where the courage had come from. He fired his Desert Eagle until the last bullet, all of them breaking the window behind Jones rather than puncturing his flesh. The gun clicked, and he brought out another clip, shoving it in as Voodoo kicked Agent Jones towards the window from the ground. Jones only stepped back calmly, reaching out to grab Voodoo's foot to throw her again. Wake opened fire again, Jones dodging like all Agents do, unless at point blank. Wake was not willing to get that close, so he kept his distance. The clip was empty again. He reached for another while Jones waited to see what he was doing. No clips, Wake realized, terrified. Jones cracked his knuckles again, and prepared to step forwards to apprehend his target.  
Fashink! Wake and Jones were both very surprised to see the sharp tip of a katana jutting out of the Agent's chest. With the host dead, Jones was forced out of the soldier's body, leaving armored SWAT hanging off of the katana. A kick from behind pulled the sword out of the SWAT. It was Odysseus.  
"Odysseus, boy am I glad to see you!" Wake called happily. Adelard climbed to his feet and shook Odysseus hand in greeting, then picked up his Arabic blades. Voodoo joined them, leaving her sais on the ground and giving Odysseus a hug.  
"We've lost Glitch," she said sadly.  
"I know. You couldn't have saved him." Odysseus sounded sympathetic, but he did not look like it.  
Must be good at hiding his emotions... Wake decided.  
"But he is not the only one we have lost," Odysseus spoke up. "Rusty has been killed."  
"What!?" Wake shouted. Adelard's face showed general shock and surprise that his friend was gone.  
"We were overwhelmed by SWAT, and then two Agents appeared. Rusty made a bold move to save both Captain Arohirohi and I, firing his shotgun at the Agents and going trigger-happy on the SWAT. He suffered numerous bullet wounds, and an Agent broke his neck. But we escaped." Odysseus stopped for a moment, thinking to himself. Then he looked up again. "Let's get out of the building, quickly. Arohirohi planted a group of charges at the base of the building, knowing that the SWAT had found them. That is why they were making their way to the upper floors. Am I right, Voodoo?"  
  
"Yes, I did forget about the bombs," Voodoo said.  
"When we jump to the next building over, she shall blow the charges, and hopefully kill any SWAT or Agents that are still in the building. Now, let us go." Odysseus jumped out the window and climbed the fire escape down to the eighth floor, jumping over onto the roof of the shorter building. The others followed.  
"Bad idea, Odysseus!" Voodoo hollered over the roar of rotor blades. The helicopter was bearing down on them, but they kept running. Odysseus' cell phone rang.  
"Odysseus, everyone is out," came a female voice.  
"Good, Arohirohi, blow it!" Odysseus shouted at the phone, then tucked it back in his trench coat. Behind them, an earth-shaking explosion blew up from the street, lifting the building up into the air momentarily, then letting it drop. It crumbled, falling forwards onto the SWAT vans and police cars. The Agents had changed hosts and were currently standing among the alarmed soldiers, who were rushing to the vehicles. A few police cars managed to avoid the toppled structure, but the rest were crushed miserably.  
"That should solve most of our problems," Voodoo said. "But we still have one right now..." The helicopter opened fire with the minigun from the side, a line of chunks of pavement being blown out of the roof too close to Wake and Odysseus for comfort. They all flipped away as the helicopter made another pass, bullets whizzing past Wake's body almost in slow motion. He landed on his back and rolled, clouds of bursting pavement surrounding him.  
"This building is six stories above the street. There is a flag pole on the third floor. We have to jump," Odysseus said passively, just above the noise. He ran to the edge of the building and leapt down, followed by Adelard and Voodoo. Wake looked over the edge, seeing them clinging to the flag pole. Like out of a cartoon, Voodoo and Adelard were hanging on to the flag, and it was ripped from the rings keeping it on the pole, falling to the street below. Odysseus, who had been hanging from the pole rather than the flimsy flag, dropped down smoothly. His boots stomped upon the reinforced roof of the Hummer as he landed on his feet. Now it was Wake's turn.  
"Freeze, or we shall be forced to open fire!" the pilot of the helicopter hollered down to him via speaker. "Put your hands in the air and drop any weapons you may be carrying!" Wake looked up at the helicopter and climbed onto the edge. Phwoosh! The helicopter left loose a volley of rockets aimed directly for Wake. Panicking, he slipped off the edge, the concussion throwing him farther than he intended to jump. He clawed the air, trying to grab something. His hand got a hold of the tip of the flag pole, which bent slightly, flinging him back up a few inches and breaking his momentum. With a stylish flip, he landed next to Odysseus. They could breath easy now, in Wake's opinion. The remaining SWAT vehicles and police cars changed his mind. 


	8. Hot Pursuit

CHAPTER 8: HOT PURSUIT  
"Good work," Odysseus said. "Now get inside. I'll trust you to pick off the police cars that follow us. And that helicopter..." Bricks fell down upon the top of the Hummer and nearly hit them as part of the building above them broke. They clambered into the car, Voodoo with them, since the crew of the Melchizedek had already driven off in their gray SUV.  
"Adelard, open the moon roof!" Wake said, spotting the police in hot pursuit. The driver and passenger of one police car blurred and became the hosts of Jones and Brown. Smith was not in sight as of yet. Jones leaned out of the passenger's window, firing his Desert Eagle at the Hummer. Adelard nodded and pushed a button next to the steering wheel, the moon roof sliding open slowly. Wake grabbed the M-16 from under the seat, bringing it up from the car and taking aim from the roof.  
In the car, the others readied themselves for the car chase. Adelard tossed his KG9 to Odysseus, next to him. Odysseus opened the glove compartment and handed two pistols to Janet, and another two pistols to Artemis, both sitting next to the car doors. They opened the windows, leaning out.  
"Think fast," Wake muttered to himself, firing his M-16 at the police car containing the Agent. Agent Brown blurred momentarily as bullets went through the windshield, slowing the vehicle momentarily. A police car started to accelerate, a cop firing a Beretta from shotgun. Of the entirely clip, only two bullets hit the Hummer, just above the back window. Wake blew him quickly, the cop falling out of car and getting hit by the next, then dispatched the driver. The car swerved out of control and slammed into the Agent-driven police car, which flipped. A burst from the M-16 to the fuel tank caused an explosion, destroying both cars. Wake smiled, satisfied with his job.  
Agent Brown and Agent Jones changed hosts quickly, to the SWAT van that was pursuing. Wake put a few bullets into the tires, and the van crashed, taking another police car with it. More cars joined the pursuit. With so many bullets coming at them and Adelard driving wildly, most of Wake's shots missed, plowing into the pavement or the headlights. A police car pulled up alongside with the Hummer, on the driver's side. Janet took aim and easily blew away the driver and passenger, and it stopped so suddenly that the car behind it smashed into it, knocking it forwards into a lamppost. The collision caused a chain reaction, several cars swerving into other cars to avoid hitting the exploding police cars, running into street shops. The police had evacuated the streets to prevent civilian casualties.  
"When we reach the intersection of Seventeenth and Tustin, turn right," Odysseus instructed Adelard, getting the directions from Bolt. Odysseus fired three bullets into the driver of a police car that was trying to pull up behind, which subsequently collided with a fire hydrant, spraying water onto the Hummer. Artemis reloaded, trying to take out the next car driven by Agents. Janet blew out the tires of another vehicle.  
"That sure was refreshing!" Wake bellowed above the din of screeching metal, shattering glass, and gunfire. A bullet from the Agents' car skimmed his right shoulder, and he gave a cry. "Ah! Artemis, take them out, now!"  
"Easier said than done!" she shouted back. "I've only got pistols, not an M-16!"  
"There's a spare rifle under the seat remember?"  
"Goody!" Artemis leaned out her window, emptying her pistols at the Agent-driven vehicle. Click! Click! She dropped the pistols on the floor of the car, groping around under the seat for the remaining M-16. She leaned out the window again, nearly catching a bullet from Agent Jones with her shoulder. Firing back destroyed the windshield and the front tires. Artemis prepared to shoot the car again, but suddenly a rocket struck the back of it, obliterating it entirely. The roar of rotor blades joined the din of battle, missiles streaking about the streets as the police cars pulled back. A rocket created a pothole in front of the Hummer, having nearly singed off his hair. Adelard tried to avoid it, but the car landed in it and bounced out, jostling everyone in the car violently. Wake lost grip of his assault rifle as he was thrown back down into the car, bonking heads with Voodoo and landing in Janet's lap.  
"My assault rifle! Artemis, give me yours!"  
"We're out of ammunition for it!"  
"Shit..." Wake thought quickly. Bringing pistols against a helicopter would be like trying to kill an elephant with a toothpick. Wake peered through the moon roof, seeing the helicopter accelerate to fly alongside the Hummer. The soldier at the minigun fired, but Adelard hit the brakes, nearly throwing him and Odysseus through the windshield. Bullets bore holes into the hood of the car and took out the left headlight, the rest riddling a parked Rolls-Royce. The fancy motor vehicle burst into flame, hurling parts across the street and setting the cars around it ablaze.  
"Quick, the grenade launcher!" Wake shouted to the others. Janet, who had pulled herself back in the window as the helicopter fired its machine guns at the Hummer, reached under the seat and handed the M79 Grenade Launcher up to Wake. He loaded a grenade into it and popped out of the moon roof once more. He aimed at the cockpit, catching a glimpse of the pilot.  
Smith.  
Thwoomp!  
Boom!  
Wake's shot had been good, smashing through the cockpit window and landing in Smith's lap. The Agent gave an angry glare as the explosive detonated. The helicopter, now smoking and driverless, dropped in altitude and hit the street. The rotor blades snapped as they tore into the pavement, flying through windows or spearing cars. The helicopter vanished in the fiery blast and the Hummer turned the corner. The pursuit was over.  
"Look out!" Janet hollered, seeing an old woman crossing the road. Adelard began to swerve, the Hummer spinning to the side and bumping into a parked car. The old woman began to blur.  
Smith. Again.  
Wake took no chances this time. "Adelard, gun the engine! I'll handle the Agent!" He loaded another grenade into the M79 launcher and took aim. Thwoomp! The grenade bounced off the pavement, not reaching its target just yet, as the Hummer started charging at Agent Smith. Smith's face became one of mild surprise as the grenade reached him, then contorted to an angry glare again. Boom! Agent Smith flew backwards, tossed by the blast. Wake's plan proved good as Adelard smeared Agent Smith across the road, though they all knew that he would just find another host.  
"That one was for Glitch, you bastard!" Voodoo shouted happily. "Booyah!"  
"And for Rusty..." Wake said quietly, smiling faintly.  
As the rebels celebrated their victory and the Hummer tore off for their exit, three policemen rushed out onto the street to see the damage done.  
"How the hell did they do that!?" one policeman said, horrified by the mangled body that the terrorists had hit with a grenade launcher and run over.  
"I knooooooooooooooooooooooooo..." the second started, but he blurred and was replaced by Agent Smith. The other two policemen were replaced by Agent Jones and Agent Brown.  
"They have escaped," Agent Brown said, the mechanical calm of an Agent's voice ever present.  
"So it would seem," Agent Smith replied, slightly annoyed by the fact that he had been kicked out a window, blown up twice, and run over during the conflict. While his body would have been completely unrecognizable by those events, he was not human. It was like hitting the refresh button on a computer screen every time he switched hosts. He merely needed to fix his tie and tidy his cuffs when the job got dirty.  
"Do we proceed?" Agent Jones asked, meaning to go after them.  
Smith put a hand to his audio feed. He frowned. "No. We need to run a search on their location. They'll be out by the time it is finished."  
"Then will not be so lucky next time," Agent Brown retorted.  
"We managed to kill two of them," Agent Jones added.  
"Indeed," Agent Smith finished.  
They changed hosts to do other duties in the community, leaving three very confused policemen to continue gawking at the blazing wreckage of the SWAT helicopter that had pounded a hole into the street.  
"What were we talking about?" 


	9. Out of the Frying Pan

CHAPTER 9: OUT OF THE FRYING PAN  
"We made it!" Janet cheered. She turned to face Wake and, without saying a word, lock lips with him. Wake was surprised, but gave in. Their lips parted, the two warriors smiling at each other.  
"Aw, how cute," Voodoo cooed. Adelard rolled his eyes and kept driving.  
They drove for a few minutes, maneuvering the streets easily. To avoid being easily noticed, Adelard played it safe by stopping at stoplights and avoiding streets with police cars. Drivers of the cars that stopped at the lights next to the Hummer gave them disturbed looks, noticing the massive amount of bullet holes that covered the car. Adelard merely smiled and waved, then took off before any Agents decided to change hosts.  
Wake looked out the window. A black cat walked by, hopping onto one of the crunched cars. Wake blinked, something he felt he had not done since the battle had started. A black cat walked by, hopping onto one of the brand new cars. "Hey Odysseus, did you see that cat? I felt like I was having deja vu..."  
"You have deja vu when the Matrix changes something or repairs something. We blew up the building. The System repaired the damage. It always does."  
"The exit is in Sunset Homes," Odysseus told Adelard. The driver nodded, pounding the pedal to the metal, and reaching the intersection of Marbury and White Rabbit in no time. The Hummer pulled up in front of the Sunset Homes. They abandoned it; it and whatever weaponry it still held would not be able to go back through the phone. A gray SUV, also riddled with bullets, had been abandoned as well.  
"Hey...it's my old street," Wake said, recognizing the battered trashcan on the corner. He looked up at the glowing sign, the sun setting behind it. He almost felt like he was home again...but no. He was not home. He could not go home. The Alchera was his home now. He turned sadly to the building. Stepping up the stairs brought back his memories of pulling up to the building in the pounding rain, stepping out of the customized vehicle. The red pill, the blue pill. It was all very strange, thinking back to then. It seemed so long ago.  
They opened the door to the abandoned apartment, which Wake noticed was much cleaner than the buildings they had been running through, they noticed that there were already people in the room.  
"Glad you could make it, Captain," said a black woman who sat in Odysseus' normal seat. She wore black leather pants, a small black shirt that exposed her stomach, and a black trench coat. She wore no shades, her cheeks bruised, probably from fighting an Agent. Her hair had been thinned, black and straight. "You were quite a help back there."  
"Thank you for the greeting party, Captain Arohirohi," Odysseus replied. "Glad I could help. I am sorry that we were not able to save Glitch."  
"And I am sorry that we were not able to save Rusty. It seems that both sacrificed their lives for others." Arohirohi rose from her chair, her high-heeled boots clicking on the linoleum. "That seems to be how things work around here. There was nothing keeping you from leaving us to die, but you came anyway."  
"I believe that in order to win this war, we should not abandon ones in need," Odysseus replied. "On the other hand, I do not believe that you have met our newest recruits, Wake and Janet." Wake and Janet stage-bowed, smiling. Arohirohi approached, looking them over.  
"You managed to keep your glasses on the whole time, good work," Arohirohi chuckled. "As you can see, my crew has had the shit beaten out of them." Wake looked to the crew, noticing that none were wearing sunglasses. The one called Bishop, first mate of the Melchizedek, shook Wake's hand with his own good one. The other arm had been broken into a nasty position, among numerous other bruises. His trench coat was gone, his dark gray garb ripped in several places. Quicksilver, a man with slicked-back hair and a long, buttoned-up trench coat, had two bullet holes in his left arm and another in his right shin. Carp, a young Chinese boy, was severely bruised.  
"Hey, you must be the new recruit of the Mel," Wake said, extending a hand to Carp.  
"Yes, I am," Carp said simply, not taking his hand. He did not seem like he wanted to talk.  
"Well, it is time for us to leave," Odysseus stated, putting a hand on Wake's shoulder. The phone started ringing. "The crew of the Melchizedek may go first."  
"Once again, I thank you, and apologize for the death of Rusty. We shall all be at the funeral service," Arohirohi said, showing her gratitude towards them with a salute. She picked up the phone and put it to her ear. It seemed as if the phone was sucking her in, her physical form giving way to a green, wiry glow. Soon she was gone, and Bishop caught the phone. The crew of the Melchizedek followed one at a time.  
"Our turn," Artemis alerted when the phone rang again. She lazily put it to her ear and disappeared. The others followed, leaving Janet and Wake left.  
"I didn't think we'd survive that," Janet said to Wake, reaching for the phone. "I thought I'd never see you alive again."  
Wake's mind was running circles around the room, knowing that Janet actually did care for him. They had known each other since kindergarten, and had never been friends. He had been occasionally looked down upon and mentioned only as the boy on White Rabbit Avenue. No longer. "The important thing is that we are alive, and we are alive together," he replied as she answered the phone. She was gone.  
Rrrrrrrrrrrring! Rrrrrrrrrrrring!  
Wake picked up the phone. "Hello?" he jokingly answered, but the phone began to consume him. Soon he was back on the Alchera, the Operator pulling the jack from his coaxial plug. Wake looked over to the bloody, unmoving form of Rusty. He had coughed blood onto his shirt, and his body was forming several dark bruises where he had been punched or shot. Odysseus had explained to him that the damage received in the Matrix went back into the Real World with you, though instead of broken bones and bullet holes, you had severe pain and large bruises. Death in the Matrix also meant death in the Real World.  
"Wake, get to the gunnery! We've got Sentinels!" 


	10. Into the Fire

CHAPTER 10: INTO THE FIRE  
"Shit, the fun never ends here does it?" Wake asked sarcastically.  
  
"I guess not," Bolt replied, rushing back to his seat to charge the EMP. Wake dashed through the Alchera past the core and the mess hall. The ship shook and there was a screeching of metal-on-metal, the engines whining as they usually did when Odysseus was moving the ship fast. Up ahead, Janet and Artemis had already armed the quads on the left and right sides of the ship's flank. Wake rushed to the remaining seat and screen, from which he could operate the topside turret, the second most powerful gun on the ship. The most powerful guns were the two cannons up front, which the co-pilot would fire to clear debris or kill Sentinels.  
  
"Shook anything that comes near the ship!" Artemis shouted to Wake as he sat down and put on his ear set. She squeezed the triggers, and the screen in front of her flared as something exploded. Wake powered up his turret, the screen giving him a view of the top of the ship from between the two barrels of the giant gun, as well as a mass of Sentinels, or "Squiddies," as they were affectionately named, swarming behind them, trying to destroy the Alchera. The man-made sewers that were once in use now served as tunnels for the hovercrafts of Zion to travel through, and they were passing by quickly, showing Wake where the Alchera had just been.  
  
"Shoot them, Wake!" Artemis hollered to him. He nodded, taking aim with the assistance of the targeting computers. It was strange; in the Matrix, he could do just about anything with a gun, but in the Real World, he had very little experience. He pulled the triggers, the barrels blazing as the gargantuan rounds flew at the cloud of robotic death. Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! Chwang! A majority of the rounds hit the machines, ripping off pieces of the Sentinels and tossing them around. The Sentinels themselves swerved about unstably, bumping into one another or hitting pipes in the sewers and exploding. The smaller bullets from the quads picked off the Sentinels as well.  
  
A few Sentinels managed to catch up with the Alchera, latching on with their powerful, clawed tentacles. One pulled itself towards one of the engines that kept the ship in the air, activating its laser and trying to cut it off. Wake turned the turret as fast as he could, firing both barrels at the Sentinel, which was blown to pieces. The engine was damaged, but still operating. It whined terribly as Odysseus turned ship into a spinning nosedive down a sewer line, ending upside-down in a pipe below. As he turned the ship over, the damaged anti-gravity generator hit a pipe and snapped off with a loud crunch.  
  
"Odysseus, we've lost an engine!" Wake hollered into the headset.  
"Make sure we do not lose any more," Odysseus replied. "The EMP is still not charged, and we need to put some distance between them. We cannot do it without engines." The ship's computer automatically started scanning the surroundings, alerting the pilot to obstacles and letting him know just how many Sentinels were behind him. Wake ignored the count of Sentinels on the screen, pulling the triggers nearly as fast as he did in the Matrix, gunning down Sentinels left and right.  
  
"Damn, there goes another engine!" Artemis yelled. There was another scraping sounds and the engines whined harder. Artemis shot the Sentinel that had taken it off, but it was immediately replaced by another. "And another!" The Sentinels were making short work of the engines, and they were struggling harder and harder to keep the massive hovercraft moving.  
  
"We're not going to make it!" Odysseus shouted into the headset. "We're going for a crash landing! Bolt, is the EMP charged?"  
  
"Yes Captain!" he bellowed, trying to stay in his seat with his hand ready to lift the lid covering the EMP button.  
  
"Then be ready to fire it!" Odysseus fired the main guns to clear pipes out of the way. He hit a pocket of methane gas with a loud blast, shrouding the Alchera in flame. The Sentinels lost track for a moment, putting distance between them. The ship collided with a wall of the sewer, crumpling up against the wall. Wake was thrown from his seat, hitting the ground hard. The last thing he heard was Odysseus ordering the others. "Bolt, EMP, now!" He passed out within seconds, screeching metal and an electrical whoosh! being the only audible sounds.  
  
  
  
Wake came to, sprawled on the floor of the Alchera, or what was left of it. The room had been seriously crumpled, but he realized he had slid out of the gunnery, as had Janet, who was laying nearby, unconscious. He tried to prop himself up on his elbows, relieved that nothing was broken up there. He got to his feet, which were wobbly.  
  
"Hello? Anyone?" Wake said hoarsely, his voice somewhat a whisper. The only sound was the sound of his feet stepping on the remains of the floor. He walked into what was left of the gunnery. The seats were bent from their erect positions, the triggers broken. A barrel from the topside turret had fallen through a gap in the roof, with broken pipes pouring coolant into the room. Underneath a section of the fallen wall, Wake could see the crushed body of Artemis. She's dead. How many more? Wake wondered, jogging past Janet again, towards the main deck. Bolt lay against the wall, a heavy beam bending him in ways that the body does not bend. Wake had to look away from that, continuing on to the cockpit. It had been smashed against the wall, denying Wake access. Odysseus' katana had skittered onto the main deck, out of the cockpit, having fallen from the dead man's grasp. Wake fell to his knees, picking up the sword, and began to cry. Why did it end like this?  
  
Janet remained unconscious, having suffered a severe blow to the head from bashing it on the wall when thrown from her gunner's seat, so Wake wandered around the ship, trying to get to his room, encountering fuel leaks, busted coolant pipes, and live wires. Small fires were also common. He kept his head low, out of the smoke. His room was open, the door crumpled and thrown aside as if a Cyclops out of The Odyssey had walked in and hit it. All of his things had been thrown from their original spots. He picked up the few things he owned, mainly the sweaters that everyone wore in the Real World on the hovercrafts, and packed them into a bag, walking back to where Janet was still out cold. As he made make-shift beds for himself and Janet, he heard a clicking of machinery in the distance.  
  
The Sentinels were still flying around in the sewers. If they found the wreckage of the Alchera and the graveyard of Sentinels around it, they would certainly search inside the remains and find two humans, one comatose, one wounded. God forbid that it would happen, but it was always possible. Wake got up quickly to grab one of the laser guns used against the Sentinels, then came back to Janet. He moved her behind a small of the roof that had fallen, hiding her from heat sensors, then crawled in after her.  
  
Suddenly, the mechanical noises grew louder. A droning noise filled his ears, and then the Sentinels entered. There were three, obviously scouts. They began walking around on their thick mechanized tentacles, using the foremost ones to move debris. One went to investigate the gunnery, another to the cockpit. The remaining one probed around on the main deck. It spotted Bolt's limp body, scanned it, and let the corpse be.  
  
"Please don't look over here..." Wake mumbled to himself, as quietly as he could. His finger wandered to the trigger of the gun as a tentacle pressed up against the wall next to him. The Sentinel caught a glimpse of him, then made a low buzzing noise as it went into a mode that Wake was sure was search-and-destroy. The sharp claws of the Machine shot towards him, but he dove forwards, firing the laser gun in the main part of the Sentinel. The beam burned into the shell and hit the vital components, effectively killing the Sentinel. The other two that had been searching zipped back into the room, tentacles pounding on the metal barrier that Wake had relied upon. More Sentinels poured in through the roof, having been alerted of Wake's presence. He fired the gun at the wave of machines, scarring their frames and disabling some of their sensors. The one immediately next to him lashed out and ripped the gun from his grasp. He jolted back behind the barrier as they reached for him, drawing Odysseus' katana. He was not sure the effects of what slashing at metal beasts would be, but he could try. A claw groped at him, and he swung down with all his might. The end of the thick arm flew off in a wave of sparks.  
  
"Get out of here!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, slashing at more arms. Some retreated, but others reached ahead. Two got a firm grasp on his leg, pulling him from cover while another Sentinel used its cutting laser to bite through the metal slab. The heated metal gave Wake an awful burn on his palm, and he shouted as a Sentinel tried burning in from the outside. A Sentinel wrapped a limb around Janet's waist, pulling her from the hiding spot.  
  
This is it...this is the end... Wake thought, his mind panicking as a wall of Sentinels appeared in front of him, ready to tear him to pieces. One moved forwards to incinerate him with the cutting laser...  
  
A large whoosh! sounded in the sewers, followed by several electronic noises, buzzing, clicking, shocking noises. The Sentinels began to drop to the floor, on top of Wake, as a wave of blue energy swept through the ship and electrocuted them. The falling robots cluttered on top of him, trapping him under their heavy weight. He could not move, but groaned under the weight, trying to lift them up. It was no use.  
  
After awhile, Wake could hear the hum of a hovercraft's engines. The hovercraft passed over the charred ruins of the Alchera, into Wake's line of sight for mere seconds. Wake was sure he could hear it setting down, seeing the shafts of light emitted by the ship's scanner play over the mangled remains of Sentinels and sewer pipes, penetrating the smoke. To confirm him, a man jumped into the hole in the roof.  
  
"Hello, anybody there?" he asked, his accent purely Australian. He pressed a button on his headset. "I'm sure the Sentinels would not be raiding an empty ship..."  
  
"Here! I'm here!" Wake cried from beneath the heavy Sentinels. "Get us out of here!" 


	11. Bound for Zion

CHAPTER 11: BOUND FOR ZION  
The large black man called for assistance from two other men, shorter than him and white. One of the white men had thinning hair and large scar on his cheek, the other distinguishable by his curly hair. It took half an hour for the three of them to clear the scrap metal off of Wake, but eventually he was freed.  
  
"What happened here? What ship is this?" the burly black man asked.  
  
"This is the Alchera. The Sentinels found us after we helped the Melchizedek escape the Matrix," Wake replied.  
  
"The Alchera?" The black man looked to the cockpit, seeing it smashed in. "Is Captain Odysseus still alive?"  
  
"No, I'm afraid not."  
  
"Any other survivors?"  
  
"Yes, Janet, behind that slab of the ceiling."  
  
"Is that all?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
The black man turned to the others. "Recover their bodies if you can. Then grab the ship's log from the computers." He turned back to Wake as the two white men split. "I'm sorry to hear about Odysseus. I'm Captain Ballard of the Caduceus." He shook Wake's hand.  
  
"I'm Wake. I guess I was one of the newer recruits," Wake responded.  
  
"Yes, Odysseus sent all the ships a message that he had freed two minds from the Matrix. I take it that Janet is the other mind."  
  
"That she is."  
  
Ballard sat in thought for a moment. "It is hard to believe that Odysseus is dead. He was a damn tough Captain. You were lucky we were in the area, otherwise you would have joined him."  
  
"Yeah, I guess." At this point the other two returned, carrying the bodies of Adelard and Odysseus.  
  
"Where are the others, boy?" the scarred man asked. Ballard moved to get Janet out from her haven of metal.  
  
"Artemis is in the gunnery. Bolt is over there against the wall. Rusty was already dead, he's over there..."  
  
"Thanks kid," the guy said grimly, walking through a hole that had been torn in the wall and heading back to the ship with Odysseus.  
  
"Ah damn, Artemis is dead?" the curly-haired man said, sighing. "Damned Squiddies..." He followed the other with Adelard's mutilated remains. Ballard returned to Wake, handing him Janet.  
  
"My crew consists of Malachi and Bane," Ballard told him. "You won't be with us for long, I don't think, but long enough to know them, and maybe help out a bit." Malachi and Bane returned after a bit. Wake walked out of the ship while they cleared the debris off of Artemis, towards the Caduceus. It was most likely the first time Wake had seen a hovercraft from the outside, and he had pictured them slightly different. The Caduceus and the Alchera looked very similar, except that the Alchera was completely totaled, both very dark in color with circular engines radiating electrical waves.  
  
Eventually, all the bodies had been recovered. "Malachi, take control of the ship for now," Ballard ordered. "I'll get Wake and Janet squared away in the medical bay." Ballard walked Wake down to the medical bay, a sterile room that was much cleaner than the rest of the ship, where Janet was stretched out on a bed, bandages on her forehead. "She suffered some head trauma, but Malachi has made sure she'll be alright."  
  
"Thank you, Captain," Wake said, staring at Janet. He caught a glimpse of the bed next to Janet. "I suppose I get the other bed?"  
  
"Correct. We should reach Zion by tomorrow."  
  
"I've never been to Zion, what will I do there?" Wake asked. Odysseus had never spoken of going to Zion, though he had it planned.  
  
"You will see what the Council decides to do with you, as a survivor of a Sentinel attack. The Alchera is unsalvageable, so it no longer needs to have a new Captain. They will likely station you aboard a ship that will accept you. Now get some rest, I'm sure you need it." Ballard took his leave, closing the large hatch behind him. Wake settled himself into the cot next to Janet, falling asleep quickly.  
  
  
  
"Kid, wake up!" Malachi said, shaking him. "We're going on a mission, orders from Zion."  
  
"What time is it?" Wake asked out of habit, pulling the cover back over him. Malachi pulled him up.  
  
"Time for you to show us just how capable of fighting you are," Malachi told him, splashing some water on Wake's face. "Janet will stay here, she's got a head injury. We might lose her if she jacks in and her signal fades. But Ballard seems to think you are well enough, and rested."  
  
Wake merely nodded, getting up to follow Malachi. "Your ship is a lot like the Alchera..."  
  
"Well, the Caddy is a fine ship. She's does the job well." Malachi led Wake to the main deck, where Ballard, Bane, and their Operator were waiting. The Operator was a quiet man, saying nothing to Wake as he plugged the others in.  
  
"Are you ready?" he asked Wake, plugging him in before there was an answer. The Construct formed around them, racks of guns rushing past them and stopping where the crew could grab their usual guns. Bane and Malachi grabbed a pistol each, Ballard doing likewise but also adding a 590 Entry Shotgun to his inventory. Bane and Malachi were dressed in very similar clothing, black shirt, black pants, black leather trench coat. Ballard was wearing a red dress shirt under a nice brown suit.  
  
"Care to brief me, Captain?" Wake asked.  
  
"We're going to apprehend a group of renegades that have betrayed Zion and randomly enter the Matrix to do what they will..."  
  
"We're killing other rebels?"  
  
"Yes, but these rebels are just plain idiots. They got sick of the war, so they stole a heavily-armed hovercraft called the Jabberwocky just recently. Their Operator comes up with scenarios and downloads specific things into their minds, then sends them in. We need to kill off the crew in the Matrix. We've been searching for the ship, but we can't find anything. We'll have to take them out of commission head-to-head. The crew consists of RAM, a gunner, and Io, a martial arts specialist."  
  
"Sounds like fun..." Wake says, grabbing a Desert Eagle, an MP5, and a grenade launcher. "We're taking a car right?"  
  
"Motorcycles, actually," Bane butted in. "Easier to get around things with."  
  
"Don't worry, your guns will fit," Malachi assured. "Though, we don't really grab more than a pistol and a shotgun."  
  
"Well, I use the grenade launcher in case there are Agents..."  
  
"Just don't hit us, hit them! I don't feel like getting blown up today..." Bane spat, grabbing another pistol.  
  
The Operator plugged them in, an abandoned shop being pieced together around them. Outside sat the motorcycles, ready to ride out into the city. They walked out of the old shop and hopped on. Wake had downloaded the program for motorcycle riding, at Bolt's insistence, but never thought he'd need it. He strapped down the MP5 behind him and slung the grenade launcher over his back, powering up the bike and roaring after Ballard and company.  
  
"We've already found 'em!" Ballard announced. A cloud of smoke was issuing from the city bank, burnt money flapping around on the ground. A conspicuous red car was roaring away from the scene, money whipping around in the air behind it like confetti in a parade.  
  
"It's the red Barracuda up there, Captain!" Wake shouted to Ballard.  
  
"I see it! Let's get it," Ballard replied. They all started pursuing the Barracuda down Plymouth Street, racing past other cars at high speeds. Wake looked down quickly to take a gander at his speed, surprised that he had already reached one-hundred-twenty miles per hour. He looked back up, going faster and faster with a determined grimace. The wind lashed at their trench coats, ruffling Ballard's red dress shirt and brown suit.  
  
"Ballard, look!" Malachi hollered to the Captain, pointing to a car. Specifically, a black Lexus with tinted windows. "Agents!"  
  
"What, you were expecting they'd let RAM and Io get away with blowing up a bank?" Ballard asked. He took out his pistol as the motorcycles closed the gap between the Barracuda and them. He unleashed a few rounds at the back tires, but missed. The Agents took notice of Ballard and rolled down the windows. Agent Brown sat in the passenger's seat, firing across Agent Jones' line of sight at Ballard. Ballard swerved, the bullets punching holes in a Volkswagen bus other the other side of the street. The Barracuda up ahead made a wide turn left onto Cricket Avenue. Ballard followed, rounds from the Desert Eagle pattering against the pavement and cars behind him. Bane fired his pistol at the tires of the black Lexus, giving a victorious whoop as the bullets shredded the wheels. The Lexus began to wobble precariously towards the sidewalk, its course ending in a large crash that knocked over a lamp post, tore off the front end of a parked car, and sent the Agents flying through the windshield and into a shop.  
  
"Nice shot, Bane, now get the Barracuda!" Ballard ordered, accelerating after turning onto Cricket Avenue. RAM had taken notice of the four motorcycles stalking them and popped out of the passenger's window. He shoved a clip into the SG-552 Commando that he was toting, then fired at them. Ballard barely avoided being killed, bullets flying past him. A bullet skimmed off Malachi's forearm. Bane was safely out of the way, farthest from the vehicle.  
  
"Wake, use the grenade launcher!" Ballard ordered, blasting away at the rear tires of the Barracuda again. The shots hit the hood of the trunk and the back window as Ballard hit a bump in the road.  
  
"I can't, it's too difficult on motorcycles," Wake responded, firing his Desert Eagle at the back wheels. A round found its mark, popping the right back tire. He tried to take another shot at the other back tire, but he had to drive out of the way of bullets. The Agents had switched hosts, now driving a black Cougar just behind them. Jones fired another burst at Bane, but he slowed down and got behind the car. Jones fired through the rear window.  
  
"Ah, shit!" Bane hollered as his motorcycle spun out, a bullet blowing out his front wheel. He was thrown off and landed on the sidewalk, bruised but not dead. Wake looked back to see him hop to his feet. The motorcycle was still skidding down the street, but a bullet from Agent Jones' gun blew up the fuel tank.  
  
"Ballard, Bane's been tossed!" Wake shouted.  
  
"I know, not to worry," Ballard said. He continued firing his pistol at the Barracuda's back wheel until the clip was empty. Malachi took a few shots and finally nailed the rubber wheel, causing the Barracuda to slow down drastically. Ballard reloaded his pistol as fast as he could, then emptied the clip into the hood of the Agents' car. The engine blew up, the car igniting and hopping up into the air for a moment.  
  
"It's not long before they get a new host..." Malachi said, knowing everyone was thinking it.  
  
"Then let's hurry up with the Barracuda and get out of here!" Bane hollered, pulling along side them in a hijacked car. Wake remembered that they had all downloaded forms of hotwiring, and could make off with a car faster than they could say the name of their hovercraft. "Wake, jump onto the car, it'll be easier for you to use the grenade launcher.  
  
Wake nodded, untying the MP5 from his bike and tossing it through the open door of the hotwired car, then leaping in after it. He pulled himself up and into the seat, closing the door. "Well, that was fun..."  
  
"Quick, lean out the window and blow the car away with that launcher. RAM is thinking of abandoning the car, I can tell. We'd run him down if he kept on driving with a car with no back tires." Wake agreed quickly, taking the grenade launcher off his back and loading a grenade in. RAM jumped out of the car as the grenade was fired, and Io hopped out as the grenade burst through the back window. The car was ablaze, but the rebels had gotten out of it.  
  
"Damn, we'll need to pursue them on foot then," Bane cursed as RAM and Io rushed into a building. Wake could see RAM firing his SG-552 Commando into the air, telling everyone to get out of his way. Bane stopped in front of the building, Ballard and Malachi parking their motorcycles behind him. Without a word, they all hopped off of or out of their vehicles and sprinted into the building. The security force was waiting for them.  
  
"Malachi, Wake, follow RAM and Io. They are likely on the roof..." Ballard fired pumped his shotgun and blew away a cop. "Go, quickly!" 


End file.
